Wings of Dust
by Solora Goldsun
Summary: In the world of Remnant, Dragon Riders are all that stand between civilians and the creatures of Grimm. During a time when the rights of dragons are still in question, illegal hybrids are being bred for shady purposes, and a rise in egg thefts has been reported, the new students at Beacon Dragonry will have their hands full simply keeping their partners safe. (DISCONTINUED)
1. Prologue

**This is a good week, my dear readers. Not only has Volume 4 premiered, but I FINALLY set up my P/atreon account. In order to commemorate that, I am releasing an AU idea I've had in the works for a few months, which utilizes one of my favorite things ever: dragons.**

 **I. Love. Dragons. When I was little, my first poetry book was Jack Prelutsky's "The Dragons are Singing Tonight." I could talk for days about the various dragon-based movies and books that I love. I could debate the differences between a dragon and a wyvern until I turn blue in the face. Heck, I could probably recommend something dragon-related in each chapter of this thing for a good long time.**

 **Actually, I think I will. If you like poetry and/or amazing artwork, check out "The Dragons are Singing Tonight." It's a great first read for any kid, and the poems are just as enjoyable for adults.**

 **Moving on, this AU takes place in Remnant, but instead of weapons and Semblances, technology was focused on improving wild dragons until they were the perfect partners for people who wish to fight Grimm. Instead of Huntsmen, Remnant is protected by Dragon Riders, who ride dragons that were infused with Dust while still in the egg. Enjoy.**

"Come on, sweetie. You can do it." Summer Rose's gentle, encouraging voice was like a beacon to the little, silver-eyed girl who tottered after her on shaky legs. "Just a few more steps. Oh, you're doing so well!"

"M-Ma?" Ruby stumbled forward, letting out a squeak of surprise as she tripped on the stone ground. Just before she landed on her face, her mother's hands stopped her.

"That was wonderful, Ruby," Summer cooed. "I'll carry you the rest of the way, okay? You're going to love this. I promise."

Ruby just giggled, tugging at the white hood that shrouded her mother's face. The cloth was so soft! "Ma!" she chirped again.

Summer giggled. "You certainly have a lot to say." Holding Ruby carefully in one arm, she walked over to the large building that sat at the edge of the Xiao Long property. Loud rumbling sounded from within. The young woman paused, smiling as the familiar noise washed over her.

Ruby, on the other hand, cuddled closer to her mother, whimpering nervously.

"Don't worry, baby. There's nothing to be afraid of. You'll see." Taking a key out of her pocket, Summer unlocked the large door and pushed it open with her shoulder.

Inside, was a single expanse paved with stone tiles. Large, wooden beams the size of trees supported the structure. To the right and left were twin setups of water pumps, giant buckets, and stacks of hay that were taller than a person. The rumbling echoed off the walls.

Unable to understand the loudness, Ruby let out a cry, clutching her mother's hood tightly in her little fists.

Immediately, the rumbling stopped. There was a tense silence, then two voices called out.

"Tai?" said a deep, low voice from the left side of the building.

"Mmmer?" came a lighter, warbling voice from the right side.

Summer smiled, gently shushing Ruby before speaking. "It's me, you two. Settle."

There was a sound from the left that was similar to a sigh, followed by the heavy thud of something sitting down. To the right, however, there was an excited chirp and a leathery rustle. "Mmmer! Com!" the voice said in a commanding tone.

"I'm coming, gorgeous." Summer patted Ruby's back as she walked to the right side of the building.

Around the corner from the buckets, bales of hay, and pumps was a giant, hay-covered slab of stone. Sitting up on the enormous bed, head fins perked forward attentively, clawed feet shuffling eagerly, was a dragon.

Summer smiled as she gazed at the creature that had been her partner in battle since she was little more than a child. "Hello, Tempest."

Tempest was huge, three times as tall at the shoulder as any horse, with a long, sinuous neck and a whip-like tail. Her wings were several times larger than her body. Fully extended, they would cover more than half of the Xiao Long household. She was a pale green color with clear, sky-blue eyes. Her thin, graceful head tilted to the side as she noticed the tiny thing her partner held. "Mmmer?" she murmured, making the sound she always used when referring to Summer.

Ruby stared wide-eyed at the enormous creature, watching as it extended its long neck until its great head was mere inches away. She saw herself reflected in a blue eye that was larger than her tiny body. She blinked. The eye blinked back. A smile spread across her face and she started giggling.

Summer sighed, relief flooding her system when she saw her daughter's smile. "That's it, sweetie. I knew you'd like her."

She looked at Tempest. "Tempest, this is Ruby. She's my daughter, like Yang is." This wasn't technically true, but Summer didn't care. Yang was her daughter in everything but blood. The dragons acknowledged her as Summer's child, as did everyone else.

"Ang?" Tempest blinked again, saying the sound that meant Yang before staring at the tiny human that Summer held. This one wasn't like Yang. This one was smaller and smelled more like Summer. Yang smelled more like her father, which was why Quake liked her so much. Tempest leaned closer and inhaled deeply, memorizing the new human's scent. This one definitely belonged to her partner.

"This is Ruby," Summer repeated. "Ruby." She held out her daughter, who reached up a tiny hand to touch the cool, smooth scales on Tempest's snout.

Tempest lowered her head, a deep purr rumbling in her throat as she felt the feather-light touch to her head. "Rrroo," she growled, imprinting the image of those silver eyes, so similar to Summer's, into her mind. This child was Summer's, which meant that she was Tempest's too. "Rrroo safe."

"Yes, gorgeous," Summer said, a tear trickling down her cheek as she watched her daughter and her dragon. "She will be safe." She scratched Tempest under the chin while Ruby continued to eagerly pat the dragon's snout. "Whatever happens to me, I know you'll take good care of her."

She was glad that Taiyang had agreed to Ruby getting to meet Tempest first. Yang's introduction to dragons had been her father's earth dragon, Quake. Large, gentle, and very easygoing, Quake was the perfect candidate for a child's first experience with dragons. Tempest, on the other hand, was much more temperamental and flighty, as was a wind dragon's nature.

Still, Summer had wanted Tempest to be Ruby's first dragon. She watched the beast carefully for any sign of a change in behavior, ready to hurry to the door if things turned sour. Thankfully, she didn't need to worry. Tempest continued to purr softly and Ruby continued to pet the dragon, occasionally letting out a giggle as a warm breath blew back her hair.

"That's my girl," Summer whispered, looking at both her daughter and her dragon as she spoke. "That's my beautiful girl."

…..

Taiyang was hardly aware of the severe jostling his body went through as Quake skidded to a halt under him. His heart was pounding like war drums, but he hardly noticed that either. All that mattered was the scene taking place just a few yards away.

The sight made his blood turn to ice water. Lying on the ground motionless, her battle with the Grimm evident in the large gashes in her body, was Summer. Pacing in circles around her, a heavily-bleeding Tempest was growling and snapping at anything that came close.

Quake let out a low, deep hum, his dark green eyes flickering with worry as he watched his friend. His giant, heavy, square-shaped head was tilted to the side and his small ears flicked every time Tempest made a noise.

Taiyang took a deep breath before walking forward, hands outstretched. Though his immediate wish was to rush to his wife's side, he knew that it would do no good. She was dead. The paramedics had called him with that diagnosis. Tempest wouldn't be acting this way otherwise. His task right now was to calm down the dragon. If he didn't, more Riders would have to be called and Tempest would be killed.

The wind dragon shrieked a warning as he came close, head frills fully extended in a threat display.

"Easy, girl," Taiyang murmured, holding a hand up behind him as he heard Quake shift and growl. "Easy."

Tempest shook her head desperately, letting out a creel that sounded eerily like a human woman wailing. The sound was enough to chill anyone's bones. Her partner was gone! The others were coming to take her away! She was alone, all alone!

"I know, Tempest. I know," Taiyang said, his voice cracking. "I want her back too, but that's not going to happen. Please calm down. I can't lose you too!" Having to watch Tempest die would likely break him. He had known her just as long as he had known Summer. They had once been part of a team together, along with Raven, Qrow, and their dragons.

Angrily pushing aside thoughts of Raven, Taiyang tried making soothing noises in his throat. Behind him, he could tell that Quake was slowly relaxing.

Tempest lashed her tail and hissed. There was no calming her. The Grimm were everywhere! They had taken Summer away! "Mmmer!" she cried.

"I know, beautiful, I know," Taiyang said desperately. "I miss her too. That's why you need to calm down! You and Ruby are all I have left of her now!"

As he spoke, he noticed that Tempest's head snapped to attention when he said Ruby's name. His heartbeat sped up. "Ruby," he repeated.

Tempest blinked as the familiar word was spoken. Her partner's daughter was still alive, was she? There was no body. The Grimm hadn't taken her. "Rrroo?" She stomped a large foot.

Taiyang nodded eagerly. "Yes, Tempest. Ruby. She's at home. She'll miss you if you die. You need to calm down so we can treat you. Ruby needs a mom. She needs you. Yang needs you too."

"Ang. Rrroo." Tempest's wings drooped and she let out a long sigh that caused several nearby trees to shake. She needed to take care of Summer's children. That was her new purpose. She stared down at her partner and let out one last, loud cry that echoed through the woods. Her body felt drained as the other humans came forward to take the white-cloaked form away for the last time.

Taiyang immediately rushed over to Tempest, stroking her scales as tears streamed down his cheeks. "Thank Dust," he murmured. "Thank Dust." He felt those large wings wrapping around him and he moved back a little to look at the wind dragon's face. "We can get through this, girl. Ruby and Yang need all of us. We need to be strong."

Tempest blinked down at him, head fins drooping in resignation. "Ang safe. Rrroo safe." She barely felt it when the healers started patching up her wounds. She just closed her eyes and keened softly, wishing that her partner would magically appear and tell her that everything would be okay.

 **This is going to be a fun one, and a long one. Now, even though this takes place in an alternate version of Remnant, and I'll be updating and coming up with new chapters over the course of several months, that doesn't mean I'll automatically consider stuff that's revealed in canon over the course of Volume 4 and beyond. After all, I don't want this series to just mirror the canon series. That would be boring.**

 **Another note: This will be updated every other Tuesday on FF, but every Monday on P/atreon. Other, regularly updated fics like "Once in a Shattered Moon" will be updated a day early on P/atreon and on its usual day on FF. The same goes for other fics. They'll be updated on P/atreon first, and here the following day.**

 **I hope that those who are able will consider becoming patrons. The money will help fund my upcoming travels, and make it so I can write more, which will ultimately lead to more content for you all to enjoy. My username is Solora Goldsun, same as here. Depending on your pledge, you can request a drabble or story, be entered in raffles for free requests, or even get commission discounts. Thank you in advance if you do decide to pledge, and thank you to** _ **everyone**_ **who reads and enjoys my work.**

 **As always, praise Monty and peace out.**


	2. The Laying

**Good morning, everyone! We're back with the next chapter of this AU, and I'm so excited. As I've said, dragons are always awesome and I never get tired of writing about them.**

 **For my dragon recommendation of the week, I'd like to nod at a book series called "Wings of Fire" by Tui Sutherland. It's a series taking place in a world of various dragon species that are at war with each other. Humans exist, but are mostly extinct and seen as strange animals to the dragons. Even though it's technically a children's series, it's very well-written. The differences between the species species, political structures of the different kingdoms, and the friendship between the main characters are all driving forces. Also, each book is from the perspective of a different dragon. I guarantee that your favorite character list will change with each book.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

"Ruby, wake up! Come on!"

Ruby groaned as a rough shake to her shoulder jostled her from sleep. She rubbed her eyes, glaring into the darkness. She had been in the middle of a pleasant dream. There had been dragons flying around her while she stood at the top of a mountain peak.

"What?" she muttered, squinting as her eyes adjusted and she recognized the outline of Yang standing over her.

"It's Tex! She's laying her eggs. Dad needs both of us to help." Yang's voice was sharp and urgent.

Immediately, Ruby sat up, tiredness seeping from her body like water through a sieve. "I'm up! I'm up!" Flicking on the light, she ran to her dresser, where her leather boots, thick denim pants, and flannel shirt sat ready. She quickly changed before running after Yang, yanking her right shoe on as she hopped on her other foot.

The two ran to the giant stable, already aware of several noises from within. Yang pushed the doors open and rushed past the two open areas that held Quake and Tempest, to the closed stalls in the back.

Ruby paused briefly, glancing from Quake to Tempest. "Hey, guys. Don't worry. Just another laying. I'm sure you're used to it, right?"

Quake's tail thumped against the ground and he rumbled softly. Tempest let out a chirp, her blue eyes taking on an excited shine as she listened to the sounds coming from the back.

Smiling at the two, Ruby ran to the back of the stable, where four stalls sat. The two on the right held older, sickly dragons that had been abandoned at different points in their lives. One was a tiny, bronze-colored fire dragon with a bad left eye named York. The other was a failed breeding dragon with stunted wings named Caboose.

The two on the left side held the Xiao Long family's only breeding dragons. The smaller one held Church, a lithe and sleek brood sire that Qrow had rustled in the mountains and given as a gift to the family. In the larger stall sat Tex, an excitable, intelligent brood dam who had a reputation for unlocking her stall and going on solo flights when the family was away.

Her great, gray-colored head turned in Ruby and Yang's direction as they approached. The usual fire in her silver eyes was replaced with tiredness and pain.

"Hey, girl," Ruby cooed as she opened the door. "I know. This is the annoying part, huh?"

Taiyang was standing near Tex's tail, already holding the first of the eggs in his hands. He was checking it for blemishes before setting it aside in a large, padded box that had been prepared specifically for this occasion. "Good girl." He patted her side gently, then turned to Ruby and Yang. "Yang, help me with the eggs. Ruby, talk to her and keep her calm. It looks like I was right about there being six overall."

Ruby nodded, moving to Tex's head. Zwei, the family's stable dog, was already standing between the dam's front paws, yipping softly and attempting to distract her from the pain. "Hey, girl," Ruby said, patting the large, gray head. "Don't worry. We just need to get the eggs, and you can go back to sleep. It'll be fine."

Distraction was key when collecting eggs from a dam. If the dragon placed too much focus on the nest, her maternal instincts would flare up and prevent anyone from taking the eggs without risking severe injury. Taking the eggs discreetly was the best way to avoid danger for both the dragon, and her handlers.

Next door, Church let out a concerned warble. "It's okay, buddy," Ruby called. "Don't worry. Tex is just fine."

"That's two," Taiyang muttered. "Careful, Yang. Remember, one of these will be yours."

"As if I could forget," Yang snorted, rolling her eyes. She wiped the egg in her hands dry, taking a moment to feel it. It was about the size of a large textbook and felt as smooth and hot as a transportation vehicle left out to sit in the sun.

In a month, it would hatch into a tiny, scaled beast that would be no bigger than Zwei. Most of the eggs would be kept in a separate barn until they hatched into dragonets. Then, buyers from larger brooderies would select which ones would be best for their stock.

One, however, was going to belong to Yang. Whichever egg she chose would be taken to a representative of the Schnee Dust Company, who would inject it with Dust, causing the unborn dragon to mutate so that it would hatch into a specialized elemental dragon. This beast would be Yang's partner when she went to the Beacon Dragonry in the fall, and would continue to fight at her side as she trained to be a Dragon Rider.

 _Will it be you?_ Yang wondered, running a hand over the smooth, coppery surface.

"Yang! Focus!" Taiyang's sharp voice cut in. "We have another one coming."

"Right." Yang quickly put the egg into the box and stood ready to accept the next one.

Ruby, meanwhile, was gently stroking Tex's snout. "You're doing so well, girl. Once this is over, I'll get some nice apples from the house. You'll like that, huh?"

Tex tilted her head, black tipped ears flicking at the mention of apples. Dragons were omnivorous, so a piece of fruit was usually as readily accepted as an extra hunk of raw meat.

Zwei hopped up and down on his hind legs, panting excitedly.

Tex snorted, nudging the dog with her snout and causing him to topple into a pile of hay. She tossed her head and seemed to huff a laugh when Zwei let out an indignant yip.

Ruby laughed as well. "Good boy, Zwei." The black corgi had been present for the last three hatchings, and had a perfect track record when it came to keeping Tex content and distracted.

The process continued until the large crate held six smooth, perfect eggs. Taiyang quickly covered the crate and wheeled it toward the stall door.

Ruby kept Tex's attention on her while the door opened and closed, and didn't stop talking to the dragon until the sound of wheels vanished. Her shoulders relaxed and she let out a sigh of relief. "That went well." She smiled at Tex, who was looking around in confusion. "I know, girl. I wish we could let you keep the eggs, but then we wouldn't be able to afford this stable."

"You know regular brood dragons don't understand us, right?" Yang asked as she walked over, patting Tex's shoulder affectionately. "Only elementals can do that."

Ruby huffed. "Well, she certainly won't listen to someone who talks about her like _that._ " She stuck out her tongue before turning to kiss Tex's snout. "Right, girl?"

Yang rolled her eyes, but couldn't keep from smiling at her sister. "Whatever. I'm going to take Quake over to the other barn so he can start his month-long guard duty."

"Okay." Ruby watched her sister rushing down the aisle to get Quake, feeling a touch of envy. _Two years,_ she reminded herself. _Then, Dad'll be giving you your egg._ She looked at Tex. "I'll get you some fresh hay, and then get that treat I promised you. How's that sound?"

Tex yawned, placing her head on her front paws tiredly, narrowly avoiding a yelping Zwei.

"Careful, Zwei," Ruby warned. "Don't forget that the dragons are bigger than you."

Zwei tilted his head and sneezed as a bit of hay tickled his nose. His tail wagged as he followed Ruby out of the stall.

Ruby paused as she passed the open platform that held Tempest. The green dragon was pacing restlessly, though she stopped when she noticed Ruby.

"Rrroo!" Tempest called, stepping off of the platform and padding over to Ruby. She nuzzled Ruby's arm with her thin snout, purring loudly.

"Hey, Tempest!" Ruby said, stroking under the wind dragon's chin. "You know what's going on, don't you? I know you'll miss having Quake around, but someone needs to watch over the eggs. I'll keep you company, okay?"

"Rrroo!" Tempest chirped happily. "Eck. Gud."

"Yeah. The eggs are all good," Ruby replied. "I'll bring an extra apple for you when I come back, okay?"

Tempest's tail lashed eagerly. "Food! Gud!"

About an hour later, after Ruby had fed and pet all of the dragons to their satisfaction, she curled up on a patch of clean straw near Tempest's platform. She felt Zwei crawl up next to her and closed her eyes. "Night, everyone," she called.

"Rrroo safe." Tempest muttered, opening her jaws in a wide yawn. Despite her sleepiness, she remained alert for another hour, watching Ruby carefully, before allowing herself to fall asleep.

…..

Weiss knew that visiting her father's dragon unsupervised was forbidden. Still, she couldn't keep herself away. Ever since she was a child, she had dreamed of the day when she would become one of the only people in the world to be gifted with a Schnee ice dragon. She had to learn as much as she could before fall arrived and she was finally sent to Beacon Dragonry.

Since the Schnee Dust Company held exclusive patent rights to the egg injection process, they also controlled who had access to what kinds of dragons. Until recently, the only legal elemental dragons were of the four basic elements: fire, water, earth, and wind. Weiss's grandfather, however, had begun experimenting with different forms of Dust. The end result was a unique, pure white creature that breathed a mist that could turn the skin black within seconds.

Only a Schnee was permitted to have such a dragon.

Weiss walked past the broodhouse, past the stable for the resident elemental dragons, and to the smallest, but grandest of the three dragon buildings at the end.

Going in the front entrance would guarantee getting caught, so she snuck around the back, looking for the small hole in the stone that she had found months ago. Her eye fell on it, and she walked over, breathed a puff of air through it, and stepped back, waiting.

A moment later, a white mist trickled out of the hole. She smiled, putting her hand in it without fear. This wasn't an ice dragon's deadly frost breath, but a simple greeting. Her father had taught her how to tell the difference between the different kinds of mists.

"Hello, Glacier," she whispered into the hole. "I hope you're well."

There was no reason for Glacier to be anything but well, of course. Mister Schnee employed the best stable hands. Any need that the mighty ice dragon had was met immediately. Also, with Winter's dragon gone, he had the entire building to himself.

Even though Weiss wasn't looking at him, she could easily picture his majestic, sharp-edged form. Large, delicate head frills that turned several shades of rosy pink and baby blue when light shined through them. A long, stern face with narrow blue eyes. Stark, white scales that could blind a person if they looked at them for too long. Spines going down the back and to the tail that looked like blue icicles.

 _I will have one soon,_ she thought with a smile. _Then, I can go to Beacon and finally have some freedom._

For the past few months, she had exercised incredible restraint, biting her tongue whenever her father said something to irritate her, remaining silent when he insulted Winter's "foolish" decision to join the Atlas Aviation Squad, being discreet in apologizing to workers when he was overly harsh to them in her presence. It would all be worth it when he finally handed that egg to her.

Visiting Glacier was the only way she kept herself sane during the long wait. Her father had said that the dragon was not to be handled by anyone but him. Still, Glacier always seemed to perk up when he saw her. Her father didn't visit the stable often, so she figured that the dragon thought of her as a substitute of sorts.

She approached the hole again and breathed gently into it one more time, waiting for the answering mist before reluctantly turning back toward the mansion. If she was caught out here, there could be trouble.

"Good night, Glacier," she called as she left.

Behind her, a low, mournful keening noise sounded from the building. If her father hadn't told her that such sounds were characteristic of ice dragons, she would have been positive that Glacier was crying.

…..

Blake's ears twitched at the sound of footsteps, and she hid quickly behind a pillar, holding her breath until the steady noise faded away again. She clutched a thick, padded satchel to her chest, hoping that it would muffle the loud beating of her heart. Her cheek stung with the imprint of a familiar palm, but that was the last thing on her mind in that moment.

Only two things dominated her thoughts: escape and justice.

The former could have been easily achieved. If that had been her only goal, she would have been halfway to Vale at this point. Adam was too distracted by his plans. He wouldn't have noticed until it was too late. However, since Blake also wanted justice, her plan became infinitely more complicated and risky.

The plan was simple enough: sneak into the hatchery, steal one of Adam's "special" eggs, and escape. She would anonymously leave the egg at Beacon Dragonry with a note detailing Adam's plan and location. While he would likely flee before being found, at least his operations would be greatly hindered.

For the sake of the dragons involved, Blake hoped that would be the case.

She stopped again outside of the hatchery, listening for any guards. If they were people she knew, she could play off her presence as Adam sending her to check on some of the soon-to-hatch eggs. Of course, that would lead to them asking Adam about it in the morning, greatly reducing her time window for escape.

To be safe, she waited until the moment when the guards switched, and took the opportunity to slip in. She'd wait for the next few hours until the guards were switched again, and leave with the egg at that point. She had specifically made sure not to drink anything in the hours leading up to the execution of her plan.

She paused briefly to look at the rows and rows of incubators. Eggs of every color lined the walls. Despite the warmth of the room, Blake shivered. There was something so cold and mechanical about this setup.

Some of the eggs were more heavily guarded than others. The ones that were closer to hatching, the ones that had more combinations of Dust injected into them, the ones that Adam himself wanted to use, had computers monitoring their vital signs. Blake would leave those alone.

Her aim was one of the simpler eggs, one of the experimental eggs. Those were kept on heated pads and were mostly there to show what different Dust combinations would do. Most of the hatchlings would die hours after birth, or be culled.

Just before she hid in one of the corners behind the computer equipment, her eyes fell on one of these eggs. It was a dark, pine green color with a scattering of silver flecks on it, like stars. _That's the one,_ she thought as she settled in and waited.

Hours later, Blake shook herself to attention. She had just started dozing off when she heard a guard nearby let out a loud yawn. They would be switching guards again soon. She glanced toward the egg, preparing to sprint over, bag it, and run. It wouldn't be long before Adam noticed her absence.

As soon as the guards left, she rushed over to the egg and picked it up. It was warm, smooth, and heavier than usual. _This one must be getting ready to hatch,_ she thought as she slipped it into the satchel. _I hope I can get to Beacon before then._

The egg went into her bag and she was gone, darting down the hallway until she reached the window she had decided on. Taking out her scaling tools, she began the descent, stopping every now and then to adjust the satchel and make sure the egg wouldn't bang against the building's side. Yet again, she marveled at how Adam had reinvented this old fortress to serve his purposes. There were rumors that he had found a wealthy sponsor to help in his endeavors, but these were unconfirmed.

It didn't matter. Blake would see to it that it ended, one way or another. Her gaze went involuntarily toward one of the distant fields. The form of a dragon was visible in the darkness, looking like a statue in the shadows. Blake knew, however, that venturing closer would reveal the smell of decay.

Shuddering, she turned away from the field and focused on the climb. She still had a long way to go before she could relax.

…..

Yang ran a hand over each of the six eggs in turn, smiling to herself as she tried to decide which one she would choose. To an untrained eye, all six eggs would look exactly the same with their smoothness and coppery color. Yang, having been raised by a Dragon Rider and breeder, could see that each one was unique. One was just a bit bigger than the others. One had a dent in the side that had to be felt rather than seen. There was one that was just a bit smaller, hinting at a runt.

Which one would she choose? Would she be softhearted and choose the runt? Since her dad would be selling the others, that would probably be the best way to make sure he made a bigger profit. Would she be obvious and choose the big one? Would she pick the one with the light sprinkling of brassy flecks on the one side? She wasn't sure.

All she knew was that she wanted her dragon. After years of watching Ruby become a better dragon handler than she could ever be, she wanted to have just one dragon that liked _her_ the best.

Ever since they were little, dragons had always taken more to Ruby, likely because of her gentler nature and friendly demeanor. Tempest treated her like a daughter, the broodies calmed down instantly at her touch, and the two abused dragons adored her. Out of all the Xiao Long dragons, Quake was the only one who preferred Yang. Even then, however, she was second to her father.

It wasn't that she was jealous, per say. Some people just got along better with dragons. Yang didn't need every dragon to love her. She just wanted to know what it was like to have one that looked to her first.

Once she chose her egg, she would then have to decide what kind of dragon she wanted. Dragon Riders could have one of four different kinds of dragons: fire, water, earth, and wind. The Schnee family held exclusive rights over the newer ice dragons, but that was fine. Yang didn't want a frosty ice dragon.

She wanted a fire dragon.

It had taken a lot of thought. When she was younger, she had wanted an earth dragon similar to Quake. However, as she grew up and realized how different her temperament was from her father's and how slow and dull his dragon sometimes seemed, she had started thinking of her mother.

Raven Branwen had had a fire dragon. Apparently, it had matched perfectly with her fierce personality. Fierce was definitely a word that described Yang.

Her uncle Qrow had a water dragon, which suited his traveling purposes just fine. Yang had met Salty a few times and liked him, but still had the feeling that such a dragon wouldn't be right for her.

When she looked at York, the abused fire dragon, she saw a spark in his one good eye that reminded her of herself. She hoped that her father would understand and wouldn't feel sad that she wasn't going to follow in his footsteps.

She had no doubt that, when the time came, Ruby would choose a wind dragon. She wondered if the hatchling would ever love its partner as much as Tempest seemed to.

"Ang?" Quake's deep, brassy voice rang through the stable. His gray-brown, broad head was tilted to the side. He blinked a green eye at her. "Leep."

Yang rolled her eyes. "I know I need to sleep, Quake. I already have one dad. He doesn't need your help." She walked over to the earth dragon and affectionately patted his snout before leaning against his shoulder. She closed her eyes, the steady breathing of her father's dragon lulling her to sleep.

 **So, I'm not a political person, but I encourage all of my American readers to go vote today. Seriously. There hasn't been a more horrifying election in my lifetime. Look deep and figure out what you want to see in the next four years for this country, and vote accordingly. Just don't stay home and do nothing. Please.**

 **Anyway, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun. Become a patron for weekly updates of this fic, as well as other rewards. See you next time. Peace out!**


	3. To Fly and to Flee

**Hello, everybody! Chapter 3 is here. I gotta keep this note brief, since I somehow managed to sleep through two alarms and have to be at work in like ten minutes. My dragon recommendation of the week is "The Summer Dragon" by Todd Lockwood. It's a newer book, but it's freaking amazing. Lockwood has done art for the "Dungeons and Dragons" books in the past, and his art is on the cover and on several pages within. Give it a read. It was actually that book that spurred me to start writing a dragon AU. Enjoy!**

"Easy, York. Deep breaths," Ruby murmured soothingly as she stood in the rejected fire dragon's stall. She dipped a gloved hand into a jar of smelly ointment and reached toward the creature's left eye.

York snorted loudly, backing away as the scent of the ointment hit him. He wrinkled his snout and tossed his head. "Mell!"

"I know it smells," Ruby said. "But, you need it. You don't want an infection, do you?" She kissed York's brass-colored nose. "I have a nice apple for you if you let me do this."

York's ears flicked and he tilted his head at the mention of food.

Taking the opportunity, Ruby moved in again and rubbed the ointment onto the dragon's bad eye. Holding his head still, she put a new cloth bandage over it and stepped back. "See? That wasn't so bad."

York huffed loudly in disagreement, ears drooping. He stared at Ruby with what had to be the dragon equivalent of a pout. "Food?" he asked pathetically.

Ruby giggled. "You're so dramatic." Reaching into her pocket, she withdrew an apple and fed it to him.

The smell of roasting fruit filled the stall as York took the apple in his mouth, blew a puff of fire, and then swallowed it whole. Of course, the aroma caused the other dragons to rumble and call out for snacks as well.

"See what you started?' Ruby rolled her eyes, patting York's neck before going to Caboose's stall. "Hey, Caboose," she called.

The blue-gray sire was staring very intently at one of the walls of his stall. He blinked two whole times before responding to Ruby's voice, warbling happily when he saw her.

Ruby placed an apple in his feeding bin and gave him a few scratches under his chin. Since he was a sire and not an enhanced elemental dragon, he couldn't speak. He just looked vacantly at her, enjoying the attention.

Both Tex and Church were asleep, Tex still tired from laying her latest clutch, Church exhausted from staying up to make sure his mate was okay.

After making sure the dragons had full troughs of water, Ruby rushed to the front of the stable, where Tempest was waiting. "Hey, girl. Ready for some exercise?"

Tempest tossed her head. "Rrroo! Rrride!"

Ruby grinned. Of course, the dragon had noticed that she was in her riding gear: leather chaps, thick gloves, and sturdy goggles. "Yeah, girl. It's time for a ride. Let me just get your tack."

Next to the stable was a small, metal-plated shed that held Quake and Tempest's saddles, bridles, and other equipment, as well as cleaning and medicinal supplies. Ruby put York's eye ointment away and checked over Tempest's tack to make sure it was still in top condition. Since she polished it every evening, this was more of a formality, but Taiyang had always been very strict about certain things when teaching his daughters about dragon care.

The main lesson was: "It's better to be cautious now than dead later."

Back in the stable, Ruby placed the saddle on the part of Tempest's long neck that joined with her shoulders. Riders always sat in that spot, as it made it easier to fight and see. Learning to not squeeze the creature's neck with their knees was one of the first lessons, taught long before a trainee was ever placed in the saddle. It had taken a long time for Yang and Ruby to master the skill to Taiyang's satisfaction.

Tightening the straps that went behind Tempest's forelegs, Ruby then went to the head and held out the bit for the dragon to see. Tempest, used to being ridden, opened her mouth readily. Ruby knew that, when she got her own dragon, the process of training it to accept a bit would be a long, strenuous one.

Once all the tack was on to her satisfaction, Ruby led an eager Tempest out the large front doors. The morning sun fell in golden waves, reflecting off of the dew and making the wind dragon's light green scales look like pieces of overlapping jade.

Tempest was trotting at Ruby's side, nearly prancing in her eagerness to fly. "Rrroo! Rrride!"

Ruby laughed at the dragon's enthusiasm. "Okay, Tempest. You need to hold still." She glanced toward the extra barn, wanting to ask Yang to join her. _Nah,_ she thought to herself. _She should have some more rest. She'll be sitting vigil with Quake until her egg is ready, after all._

With that decided, she took the dragon to the long, grass runway that was used for takeoff, grabbed the thick leg straps and used them to climb to the saddle. Planting her feet firmly in the stirrups, she patted Tempest's neck. "Tempest, fly."

Tempest snorted, immediately bounding through the grass. Dewdrops flew around her, glistening like jewels as they dampened her long legs. Extending her wings, she leaped into the air and caught the wind beneath them.

Ruby felt herself being rocked back and forth by the dragon's loping gait. This was always the bumpiest part of riding. If one could learn to stay on during takeoff, everything else was said to be easy.

For Ruby, it was also one of the most exciting parts. Feeling the first gusts of wind in her face before she had to put the goggles on, hearing the wings unfurl behind her, and sensing the dragon's excitement were all part of the overall experience.

Then, they were in the air, pushing any other thoughts into the realm of unimportance.

The cold air beat against Ruby's thick jacket as she let Tempest take their familiar route over the forest. She barely needed to use the reins. She had been riding her mother's wind dragon since she was young, and at this point, it felt as if the dragon could almost read her thoughts.

She looked down at the treetops, which shined gold in early sun. There was no sign of Grimm, which didn't surprise her. There weren't any so close to the house. Quake and Tempest's presence made sure of that.

As she rode, she thought about Yang, and how lonely the following year would be with her gone. Of course, she was proud that her sister had been accepted into Beacon Dragonry, and knew that she would follow in her footsteps eventually. Still, Ruby didn't have many people she could hang out with. Besides Yang, the only friends she had were four-legged and scaly. She wasn't complaining, of course, but she wondered what the next year would bring, and then the next.

After that, she'd get her own egg. What would her dragon be like? Would she be as close to it as she was to Tempest? Closer? And would Tempest be okay when she left?

The cold air on her face reminded her to remain alert. Shaking herself, she focused on the pale blue sky above her and the dragon beneath her. Worries of the future could always come later.

…..

The silence in the small room was as thick as frost. Weiss stared intently at the single incubator in the white-walled room. The egg within was perfect: not too round, not too thin, not too big, and not too small. It had been carefully examined for any fractures, bumps, or strange markings. Of course, she expected nothing else. This egg had come from the brood dam Number 7 and the sire Number 12. Both had excellent records with producing strong, healthy dragonets.

Jacques Schnee was crouched down, withdrawing a long syringe with a thick canister from a sterile case. Nearby sat a container of silvery-blue ice Dust.

Normally, a highly-trained representative would handle this process, but Schnee always insisted on injecting the family's ice dragons personally. His father had been the same way, back when the breed had first been perfected.

"Pay attention, Weiss," he murmured, measuring the Dust and carefully pouring it into the canister. "You will be doing this for your children someday."

"Yes, sir," Weiss said, forcing herself to watch her father instead of the gorgeous egg. _My dragon is in there,_ she thought. _My dragon!_

Sealing the canister, Jacques approached the egg, placing one gloved hand on the side. He closed his eyes, lightly tapping the shell and listening intently. Finally, he found what he was looking for: a slightly hollow sound. When injecting an egg with Dust, one always looked for the hollow, empty space within the egg. Otherwise, there was a risk of piercing the embryo and deforming or killing the dragon with the needle.

Jacques touched the needle tip to the shell, tapped once again to be sure, and slowly plunged it forward, not stopping until the shell was nearly touching the canister. He pressed the button at the end of the device, and a hissing sound signaled the movement of the Dust.

Weiss watched silently. She had seen the Dust injection process several times, of course, but it always fascinated her. The fact that the needle could go in and out without harming the egg or cracking the shell amazed her. Also, the concept that a creature could be changed so drastically and so beautifully with a simple pre-birth injection was simply astounding. It was moments like these that made her truly proud to come from the Schnee family.

"There," Jacques murmured as he finished, carefully withdrawing the needle. He took a small piece of sterile tape and put it over the puncture. Since the egg was still young, the shell would heal in a few days. "Once it has matured, you will both be transferred to Beacon. I trust that you have figured out exactly what to pack."

"Of course, Father," Weiss replied promptly. She had been packing, unpacking, and re-packing for months now.

"Good." Jacques nodded. "You and that dragon will be representing the Schnee family. I know that you will train it well and set a good example to those around you."

"I will." Weiss had heard this speech countless times. She was well practiced at responding quickly and hiding her annoyance at the constant reminders.

Satisfied, her father turned to pack up his equipment. "That will be all, Weiss."

"Thank you, Father," Weiss said, her shoulders slumping a bit. She had hoped that, now at least, she would be given some words of encouragement or congratulations from her father. It looked like that would not be the case.

When she stepped outside, she paused to look at Glacier, who was tethered to a nearby standing post. The large dragon's head was bowed and his blue eyes were fixed on the ground. One of his delicate head fins flicked when Weiss stepped outside, but he didn't move otherwise.

Weiss hesitated before walking over. Even though her father had warned her that Glacier was too temperamental for anyone but him to touch, she had successfully pet the dragon on multiple occasions (when no one was looking). Still feeling a little starved of affection, she found that she desperately wanted a comforting touch, even if it was the dragon's frosty scales.

She stood close to his foreleg and reached up to place a hand on his shoulder. A large, deep blue eye regarded her. It blinked once. Glacier let out a long breath that sounded like a sigh, then turned away.

Feeling eyes on her, Weiss abruptly turned around to see one of the Faunus stable hands looking in her direction. He was an older man with tattered slacks and fox ears. Of course, he immediately lowered his gaze when she noticed. She thought she caught a hint of a smile on his face as he walked away.

She let out a sigh of relief. None of the Faunus would report her. They never dared to approach her father.

Glancing over her shoulder at Glacier, she found herself frowning at the dragon's turned head. For some reason, that quick, forbidden touch had left her feeling more bereft than before.

…

Blake's head bumped repeatedly against the wall of the train car she was sitting in, forcing her to remain alert and guaranteeing that she wouldn't fall asleep. Her arms were tightly wrapped around her satchel, as if subconsciously worried that Adam would appear to snatch it away. Holding it close, it was easy to feel the occasional tap-tapping against the shell.

 _Please don't hatch early,_ she silently begged. _Please don't hatch early._

If the egg hatched, quietly leaving it at Beacon and disappearing into the night would be out of the question. The hatchling inside would need to bond with someone, since all Dust-injected dragons were made to do so. And, since Blake was the only one around, it would have to bond with her, and her plans of going on the run would come to an abrupt end.

Romantic as the idea was, going into hiding with an infant dragon was next to impossible. Baby dragons needed care, and that required resources (more as the creature grew). With this egg especially, it was completely out of the question. There was no telling what the dragon inside would be, or even if it would survive.

Another frantic tapping rapped against the shell. Blake hugged it closer, humming softly to it, hoping that would somehow help.

 _You have earth Dust in you. I can tell that much,_ she thought, looking at the dark green color of the shell. Earth eggs generally were a dark, earthy shade of green, brown, or gray. Wind eggs were usually pale green, yellow, silver, or white. Fire eggs were various shades of red, gold, and orange. Water eggs were always some shade of blue. _But, what else do you have?_

Elemental dragons were created when a single type of Dust was injected into an egg. According to the law, only one Dust type could be used. Any more could cause the dragon to be unstable, even dangerous. A few years ago, there had been a massive purge of experimental dragon eggs and hatchlings, which eventually led to the Schnee Dust Company gaining exclusive rights over the production of such dragons.

Only five elemental dragons legally existed: fire, earth, water, wind, and ice. The Schnee Dust Company was supposedly experimenting with ways to safely create dragons with lightning and gravity Dust.

Adam, as Blake had found out, was experimenting with every Dust type he could find, regardless of safety. She remembered watching several poor, misshapen hatchlings die at her feet minutes after hatching.

"The White Fang needs an edge," he had explained when she confronted him about it. "We have to make some sacrifices. Regular dragons aren't good enough anymore." He had said this in plain earshot of his mighty fire dragon, Brand.

When Blake pressed the issue, Adam had struck her. It wasn't the first time, but it had definitely been the last. Blake still remembered that moment when Brand started to walk toward her, concern in his golden eyes, only for Adam to smack his nose with his riding crop and send him fleeing back to his stall. That moment, more than anything, had been what solidified her decision. Blake wished that there had been some way to take the poor beast with her when she fled.

For years, Adam had promised Blake her own dragon, but had always found reasons to postpone it. "You're not quite ready." "We weren't able to get one good enough." "Wait for the experimental eggs to be perfected. Then, you'll have one of the strongest beasts here."

So many things became clear during that last encounter with Adam, and Blake was still mentally hitting herself for not seeing it sooner. He hadn't given her an egg because that would have meant giving her power. With a dragon, she would have an ally for life, something that would always be on her side. And, when the dragon grew, she'd have a means of leaving Adam and the White Fang permanently.

The egg shook again, more violently than the last time, and Blake groaned. _Please, don't do this to me!_ she thought, though she had a strong feeling that the stubborn dragonet within wasn't going to heed her prayers, no matter how desperate. She looked out the partly-open door, waiting for an opportunity to jump from the train. If this was going to happen, it would at least happen in a setting where both she and the beast could sit still.

…..

Yang was abruptly awoken when Quake stood up. She yelped, falling backward as her shoulder pillow was suddenly taken away. She blinked dumbly for a minute, and it took a second to recognize the sound of her father's laughter.

"Honestly, when will you and your sister ever learn? Sleep with a dragon is never restful." Taiyang walked over, helping his daughter up.

"I slept just fine," Yang muttered, rubbing her eyes. "If you had waited an hour before coming in, I would've woken up on my own."

"Well, you know how I get during brooding season," Taiyang said, shrugging his shoulders. "So, how are they looking?"

Yang stretched her arms. "They looked fine when I went to bed." She followed her dad over to the large incubator. Just like last night, the eggs were sitting there, smooth and shining. "Still not sure which one I want, though."

"You have a few days before you need to know for sure," Taiyang assured her. "This is an important decision, so it's good that you're thinking so hard about it." He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "I want you choosing the best egg out of the bunch. Don't worry about my profits this year. I'll be fine."

Yang grinned sheepishly. "Quit reading my mind." She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "I've decided I want a fire dragon."

Taiyang nodded slowly, not looking surprised at all. "I think that would be a good fit for you. I've seen how well you get along with York."

Yang let out a silent breath of relief. She had been worried about her dad's reaction. She didn't want to bring up more painful memories of her mother than she had to. "I guess we'll need to expand the stable."

"Actually, I was thinking about repurposing the egg barn," Taiyang said. "The incubators can fit easily on one side, and it would be easy to add a bit of extra space. Besides, having another dragon shoved into that stable might stress out the others."

"Well, there's more stone in this building than the other one," Yang noted. "Probably better when dealing with fire, huh?"

Taiyang chuckled. "Exactly." He looked at the eggs for another moment before placing his hand on his daughter's shoulder. "I know I probably said this before, but I'm very proud of you. Being a Dragon Rider isn't easy, but I know you'll be able to handle it." He paused before adding: "I'm sure your mother would also be proud."

Yang smiled. "Thanks, Dad." She wasn't sure whether he was referring to Summer or Raven, but supposed that it didn't really matter in the end.

 **Well, I'm off. If you want to see weekly Monday updates of this, along with other rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun. As always, praise Monty and peace out!**


	4. A Fight in the Dark

**So, I have found a flaw in my P/atreon plan to update this thing every other week on here: This fic is way too long for that to be even remotely plausible. By the time it ends on P/atreon, it'll probably take like a year for you FF people to get to that point. The once vs twice a week idea works much better for shorter chapter fics, I realized. So, I'm going to get started on my Team Sloth fic, "Five Summers," to be my patron reward, and will plan on making updates on "Wings of Dust" weekly for both sites. It won't happen right away. My current plan is to keep it twice a week here until Chapter 10 is posted on P/atreon. I'll have a good backlog on "Five Summers" by then. By my calculations, Chapter 6 and onward will be weekly here. Patrons will be five chapters ahead.**

 **Now that my math-ing is over, let's move on to my recommendation for this week: The "Temeraire" series by Naomi Novik. It takes place in an alternate world during the Napoleonic wars, where all countries have a division of the military that rides on the backs of sentient dragons. Things like the rights of dragons in comparison to people, the outcast status of dragon riders, and the way dragons perceive society as opposed to their riders are all prominent plot points.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Escaping the train was a relatively simple matter. It helped that Blake had had to jump from moving trains in the past for other White Fang missions. She simply had to wait for it to draw near a station and begin the process of slowing down. Then, holding the satchel close, she ducked and rolled into the grass. Though she sustained several bruises, she was mostly unharmed. The egg seemed fine, though it kept shaking at intervals.

Despite her current predicament, she felt exhaustion creeping up on her. So, she found a spot underneath a tree a good distance from the tracks, curled up around the satchel, and fell into a restless sleep.

Maybe an hour later, she was awoken by a sharp crack. She sat bolt upright, half expecting to see someone pointing a gun at her. Then, there was another crack, and she remembered the egg.

 _This is actually happening. Why didn't I steal a different egg?!_

Helplessly, Blake watched the egg shake once. Twice. Then, another large crack went down its side. A bit of shell fell away as a snout peeked through. She saw the tiny horn that was on every dragon's nose at birth, but fell away once its job of piercing the egg was done. A thin, slimy foreleg pushed through, followed by the curious snout. Then, the dragonet extended its wings, pushing away more of the shell. Finally, it gave itself a little shake, causing the rest of the egg to fall around it.

There, sitting in a mixture of egg goo and shells, was a baby earth dragonet. Its scales were the same pine green color as its egg, and a scattering of silver flecks covered its back and face, looking almost like freckles. It had the distinct square jaw of an earth dragon, as well as the smaller wings and thick tail. When it looked up at Blake, a pair of pale yellow eyes locked on hers.

 _Don't get attached,_ Blake told herself firmly. _It's an experimental egg. It'll die within a few hours. You can still leave the body at Beacon and run._

The hatchling took a shaky step toward her, letting out a quiet, pathetic chirp. It slipped on one of the shells and fell to the ground. The grass was wet with dew, and it shook its head, letting out a sneeze. The cold morning air caused it to shiver. It looked imploringly at Blake, chirping once again.

 _It'll die soon. Just let it happen._ As Blake forced the thought, however, she felt a sudden sense of horror. _That's exactly what Adam would say!_ It's also exactly what he'd do: let an experimental dragon die, so that he could use its body to serve his own purpose. Wasn't that what Blake wanted to stop?

Blake only hesitated for another moment before taking off her jacket and using it to pick up the dragonet. It huddled close, egg goo and dew still clinging to its scales. Blake wished she had some towels. Instead, she used one of her spare shirts to wipe away what she could. "Even if you're about to die, you'd might as well be comfortable."

The dragonet didn't understand her words. All it heard was the sound of Blake's voice. It snuggled close, trying to get as warm as possible. After a few minutes, it looked up, making a sharp, insistent barking sound.

Blake couldn't help but smile. "Hungry, huh?"

Another bark.

"Okay. Let's see what we have." Blake reached into her satchel. There wasn't much in the way of food, as she had been focused on carrying the egg, but there was some beef jerky in one of the pockets. Taking it, she took a large bite and started chewing.

Meanwhile, the dragon was trying to climb up her shirt, nosing at her face, squeaking eagerly.

Once the beef was well-chewed, Blake spat it into her hand and held it out to her new charge. The tiny creature immediately started lapping at the mush, finishing it within seconds and barking for more.

"Demanding little guy, aren't you?" It took five more chewed helpings of beef before the dragon was finally satisfied. Blake held it against her chest as its muscles relaxed and it fell asleep, still clinging to her shirt.

For a few minutes, Blake just sat there, stunned. There was a baby dragon sleeping on her. A baby dragon! Not only that, but it seemed strong, not like the sickly creatures that had hatched from some of the other experimental eggs. _Then again, those hatchlings either died, or were culled by Adam. Maybe this is one that would have had to be culled._

The tiny creature stirred in its sleep, and Blake felt a hot flush of combined rage and determination. _Well, he won't get you._

Still, she was faced with a new dilemma: What would happen when she got to Beacon? Leaving the dragon on their doorstep was no longer an option. The creature had bonded to her, and she wasn't about to abandon it. However, as she had previously determined, running away with it wasn't an option either.

 _You're technically an illegal dragon,_ she thought. _If I take you to Beacon, they might kill you. Then again, they might not…_ Ozpin, the Head Dragonmaster of Beacon, had a reputation for caring deeply about the protection of dragons, and had been publicly against the mass culling of the hybrid elemental dragons made years ago.

Blake heaved a sigh. "I guess he's our only hope." Standing up, she secured her satchel and held her new charge close to her chest. "Well, we'd better get walking, unless you think you can fly me there."

The dragonet, of course, didn't reply.

…..

"Riding goggles, check. Riding shoes, check." Weiss looked between her gathered items and the list in her hand. She quickly made sure that her riding clothes and various-sized bridles and halters were ready. Those would be the most important things, after all. Of course, she also made sure that she had several outfits for classes and combat training, as well as a few casual pieces.

She paused to pick up her Scroll, which was giving her a live feed of her egg. She smiled as she looked at the shell, which was already starting to take on a paler hue. By the time it hatched, it would be various shades of white, light blue, and silver. And the dragon inside… Weiss sighed as she thought about it.

 _It will be the most beautiful dragon on all of Remnant!_

Smiling to herself, she pocketed her Scroll and stepped outside to make her rounds of the stables. Looking in on the dragons always put her in a positive frame of mind, and she found that she wanted to be around them even more than before, now that the anticipation for her own dragon was building.

She walked through the breeding stables, pausing at the stalls of Number 7 and Number 12. Gazing at their strong builds and perfectly-shaped faces and horns, she was even more convinced that their egg would hatch into the greatest ice dragon anyone on Remnant would ever see.

Her final destination was Glacier's stable. She walked up to the hole in the wall and blew gently into it. A second later, a breath of mist came out and she smiled. "Hello, Glacier," she whispered.

A quiet snort sounded from the other side.

"I'll be leaving for Beacon soon. I finally have my ice dragon egg. I hope the hatchling grows to be just like you."

A low, keening noise replied.

Weiss frowned. "You almost sound like you're crying when you do that."

"He is."

A voice from behind her caused Weiss to jump, spinning around, eyes wide. Standing a few feet away was a stable hand. It took a moment to recognize the older, fox-eared man from the other day. Weiss quickly drew herself up. "What business do you have sneaking up on me like that?"

The Faunus bowed his head slightly. A calm smile was on his face. "My apologies, Miss Schnee. I'm just naturally quiet."

"Well, announce yourself in the future," Weiss snapped.

"Will do." The Faunus nodded toward the hole in the wall. "I'm gonna be patching that up. That's why I'm up here." He held up a small bucket of cement. "Looks like I forgot my spade, though. I guess you get a few more minutes." Turning, he walked back toward the supply shed. "I saw your dad walking around. You'll probably want to be gone soon. He was heading this way."

Weiss watched him go, still slightly shaken. _He won't tell my father,_ she told herself. _Besides, I already have my egg. Father wouldn't give it away over something like this._

Turning to the hole in the wall, she whispered: "Bye, Glacier. I'll try to see you once more before I go. Be good."

Another soothing puff of mist caressed her face, making her smile softly.

…..

"Soooo, which one are you gonna pick?" Ruby asked, watching her sister touch each of the eggs for what was probably the thousandth time. "Have you narrowed it down?"

Yang smiled at Ruby's excitement. "I'm stuck between the big one, and the one with the markings on the side." She ran a hand over both eggs. "I just can't believe it's gonna be mine. I've been waiting for this since I was little…"

At that moment, Taiyang stepped in. He nodded in approval when he saw his daughters checking the eggs. "Hey, you two. Why don't you take Quake and Tempest for their evening walk? I'll hold the fort."

"Sure, Dad." Yang walked over to Quake, taking his leather halter from the wall. "C'mon, boy."

Quake tossed his head and snorted indignantly.

Yang laughed. "Right, right. You're not a boy. You're a grouchy old man, just like your rider."

"Hey!" Taiyang grabbed his daughter by the shoulder and proceeded to noogie her. "Who're you calling old?"

Ruby watched the two, shaking her head fondly as she exited the egg barn. _Dad and I are probably the only ones who can do that without getting murdered,_ she mused.

Tempest was already up and ready to go out. She met Ruby at the stable entrance, holding her halter in her mouth.

"Okay, gorgeous. Let's get this on." Ruby carefully put the halter on the dragon, adjusting and tightening the straps where necessary, before attaching a lead line and stepping back outside. Technically, the halter and lead acted as guides. If Tempest or Quake wanted to, they would easily be able to break away and fly off into the night. Thankfully, the Xiao Long dragons were perfectly trained and unfailingly loyal.

Yang emerged from the egg barn with Quake. "So, to the field and back?"

"Sounds good." Ruby tugged on the lead. "Let's go, Tempest."

The four walked through the grass, enjoying the cool night air on their faces. The smell of the pine trees that sat near the house seemed to be magnified and thickened by the darkness.

"Fall will be here soon," Yang said. "Think you'll be okay without me?"

"Of course," Ruby replied. "Just promise to write a lot. And send pictures of your dragon when it hatches!"

"I can just text you on my Scroll, you know."

"Yeah, but letters are more fun," Ruby said, rolling her eyes. "Besides, they'll have your scent on them, so I can show them to the dragons."

"Eh, they won't miss me much. When you go, it'll be another story."

"Don't say that!" Ruby retorted. "They love you just as much as they love me!"

"That's not true, and you know it." When Ruby opened her mouth to protest, Yang waved her off. "Chill, Ruby. It was a compliment. I only need one dragon that likes me best, anyway."

Ruby frowned, but didn't say anything else, because the lead suddenly went taut. "Huh?"

Tempest had lifted her head and was staring into the distance, frills fully extended. A low growl rumbled in her chest.

Quake followed suit, nostrils flaring. "Fire," he muttered.

Ruby followed the dragons' gazes, eyes widening with horror. Smoke was rising into the sky.

"It's coming from the Violet Family Broodery!" Yang whipped out her Scroll, dialing the emergency number.

Tempest, meanwhile, grew stiffer. "Rrroo!" Her voice was urgent.

Ruby squinted, trying to figure out what Tempest was looking at. Then, she saw a brief, golden flash of a dragon swooping low over the broodery before disappearing in the darkness again. A burst of flame lit up one of the barns. "A fire dragon's attacking the broodery!"

Without stopping to think, she tugged on Tempest's head. "Tempest, mount!" The wind dragon lowered her head.

Yang's eyes widened. "Ruby, what are you- Hey, I'm by the Violet Broodery. There's a fire dragon attacking the- Ruby, don't you dare!"

It was too late. Ruby was already on Tempest's neck. "Tempest, run!"

With an eager hiss, Tempest bounded forward.

Yang cursed, closing her Scroll and pulling Quake's head down. "Come on, old man."

As Ruby neared the broodery, she could see a fight happening on the ground. On one side were the Violet family and their stable hands. On the other were several masked figures led by a fancily-dressed man holding a cane. An airship sat nearby. The masked figures were trying to get to the barns, the middle of which was on fire.

Ruby jumped from Tempest's back, trying to remember the battle commands she had read about. "Tempest, blow!" She pointed at the masked people.

Tempest inhaled deeply, letting out her breath as a gale that swept the people back. Only the man with the cane managed to keep his feet. When the wind died down, he actually chuckled.

"Hello there, little girl. Isn't that dragon a bit big for you?"

"You tell me. Tempest, grab!" Ruby pointed at the man.

Meanwhile, Yang rode Quake over. Seeing the masked people scattered, she grinned and jumped off, cracking her knuckles. "Quake, crush!" She pointed to the air ship.

Quake growled, but didn't move toward the ship. Instead, he focused his green gaze on the fires. An amber glow surrounded him for a moment before a mass of dirt and mud was lifted into the air. It hovered for a moment, then rained down on the burning barn, quenching the fires.

Yang faltered. "Yeah, that was probably better. Good boy, Quake." She noticed some of the masked men getting up. "Tell you what: You do your thing, I'll do mine." With that, she ran toward the nearest masked man, punching him in the face, and planted herself firmly in front of the barns.

The man with the cane, narrowly avoiding Tempest's claws, made a run for the ship. At that moment, the sound of beating wings came from overhead. The man took out his Scroll as he ran.

"We got a Rider!"

Immediately, the fire dragon appeared overhead, wheeling around, shooting balls of flame at the new enemy. A thin, powerful jet of water hit it square in the chest.

Ruby jumped onto Tempest's back again. "Tempest, gust!"

Obediently, the wind dragon started beating her wings, creating a gust that pushed the fire dragon back.

Meanwhile, the airship started up and took to the sky, the masked men scrambling aboard. Quake sent a rock hurtling toward it, but had to jump back as the fire dragon breathed a fireball at his head. Then, the enemy dragon sent out a cloud of smoke that quickly engulfed everything. By the time Tempest was able to blow it all away, the dragon and the airship were gone.

A thud nearby signaled the landing of the Dragon Rider. Her mount was a grim-faced, pale blue water dragon. The gills on its neck were opening and closing and its webbed paws scuffled irritably at the dirt. Its pale eyes held a glare that was mirrored in the gaze of its rider. The woman strode over, stopping to stare at Ruby.

Ruby gaped at the woman for a moment before hurriedly scrambling from Tempest's back. She stared in awe. "You're a real Dragon Rider…" she breathed. "Can I have your autograph?"

Behind her, Tempest rolled her eyes and let out a very human-sounding groan.

 **Like I said before, there will be some parallels between what happens in this AU and what happens in the canon-verse, but not too many.**

 **I still have two open commission slots, if anyone's interested. Just PM me for details. If you want to show monthly support, and be further ahead in this fic, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	5. Dragonmaster Ozpin

**Howdy, my beloved readers! We are back with another chapter of this lovely AU. Better still, weekly updates will now be a thing. Meaning, you will see Chapter 6 next Tuesday. Also coming that week will be my new biweekly-vs-weekly fic, "Five Summers." Makes sense that this will fall on the week of Christmas, huh?**

 **My dragon recommendation of the week is "The Pit Dragon Chronicles" by Jane Yolen. It's a fantasy/sci-fi series taking place on a hostile planet where dragons are bred for pit fights and food. The main character, Jakkin, steals a hatchling to train, so that he may buy his way out of bondage. This one is interesting, because the dragons are seen by human society more as animals than as partners or sentient beings, even though there are questions raised concerning how true that actually is.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Taiyang was leaning back against Quake, a cup of mulled wine in one hand. He didn't normally drink so late, but he desperately needed to calm down. He sipped it slowly, shaking his head. "You definitely take after your mother. I can't believe you put yourself in danger like that, and are being rewarded for it!"

Ruby could barely keep from grinning. She had just finished recounting the story of the fight at the Violet Broodery, and what had happened afterward. The Dragon Rider who had saved them turned out to be Glynda Goodwitch, second in command to Dragonmaster Ozpin. After the fires had been put out and the broodery's dragons calmed, she had called him to the site. He had arrived on the back of an ancient-looking earth dragon with rough scales that looked like tree bark, and sunken-in gray eyes. The dragon had looked at Ruby for a long moment before muttering something to Ozpin, then sitting down.

"The first thing he said was 'You have silver eyes.' I thought that was weird, but I guess there are stories about people like that. Anyway, we talked for a bit, and he asked if I wanted to go to Beacon. I was like 'Of course!' and he was like 'Well, all right.' I didn't get at first that he meant like _this fall_ , but he totally did, and EEEEK!" Ruby squealed, jumping up and down.

Yang was grinning. "Just couldn't wait, could you?" She glanced at Taiyang. "Ozpin talked to me too. He said that I show a lot of bravery and initiative. He looks forward to teaching me. Pretty neat, huh?"

Taiyang breathed a long sigh. "I don't like that you two put yourselves and the dragons at risk, but I understand why you did. Judging by when Glynda arrived, the whole area probably would have caught fire without your help."

"And they would have gotten more eggs," Ruby added, eyes flashing. "Those jerks stole like seven before we got there!" She glanced toward their own eggs. By silent agreement, the family had gathered in the egg barn. After a robbery so close to home, they were going to be doubly vigilant concerning their own small brood.

"So, about that silver eyes thing…" Yang tilted her head. "What was Ozpin talking about?"

Taiyang smiled. "Well, you probably know this by now, but all dragons that aren't injected with Dust are born with silver eyes. They may change color over time, but all natural hatchlings have that same silvery color. Stories say that people born with silver eyes, or dragon eyes, are naturally more attuned to dragons and can communicate with them better."

Yang grinned at Ruby. "Well, at least there's a reason why they all like you best."

Ruby huffed. "This again? They do not."

"Just watch," Yang said, her smile not wavering. "You're gonna be the most popular person at Beacon. Ruby, the dragon-eyed dragon whisperer!"

"That's the _last_ thing I want!" Ruby exclaimed, horrified at the very thought. "I just want to take care of my dragon and learn to fight. I don't want to be around _people_."

Taiyang ruffled her hair. "I'm sure you'll be able to handle anything that happens, whether it's dragons or people." He sighed. "I'm just disappointed that you won't be going to Beacon with one of our dragons. I can only spare one this year."

"Well, Beacon has good eggs, right?" Yang asked.

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, but I won't be able to choose what kind of dragon I get. At Beacon, they put the students in a room and let the dragons choose when they hatch." She shrugged. "Well, I'll love whatever dragon I get."

Taiyang smiled. "I know you will, sweetie." His Scroll started buzzing, and he walked into the next room.

"So, Yang. What did you think of that fire dragon?"

"It was so fierce!" Yang said, clenching her fists with excitement. "And mine's gonna be even fiercer!"

"With you as its rider, it definitely will be," Ruby replied.

"Really? Are you sure? Well, that's wonderful!" Taiyang said as he walked back into the room. "I'll see you in the morning. Thank you!"

"What's up, Dad?" Yang asked as he hung up.

"That was Mrs. Violet," Taiyang explained. "She wants Ruby to have one of her dragon eggs for when she goes to Beacon!" He looked at Yang. "And she has something for you as well."

Ruby gasped. "Really? But they lost seven eggs. Can they afford that?"

"That's what I asked. She says that they would have lost all of them without you girls, and will still have enough to keep her staff and keep the place running till next year. I'll be helping out over there when I can, of course." Taiyang smiled. "Looks like you'll get your wind dragon after all, and the Violet eggs have always hatched reliable dragons."

"What's Yang getting?" Ruby wondered as she sat down. The lightness in her chest was starting to make her feel a bit dizzy.

"Not sure," Taiyang muttered. "I did tell them you were going to get a fire dragon, sweetie. Maybe they have something special for that."

"Like fireproof pants?" Yang laughed. "That would probably help."

The next day, when the egg was brought over, Yang found that she was almost right. The gift was a fireproof sack that was specially-designed for carrying hatchlings.

"The bond between a rider and dragon needs to be developed from the very beginning," Mrs. Violet explained. "Being close to the hatchling at all times is essential, but it's harder when you have a fire dragon, since they burn most materials. My grandfather had one, and says that carrying her around in this helped make her the most loyal fire dragon anyone ever saw."

"Wow!" Yang fingered the tough material. "Thanks. I'll definitely use it."

Ruby was hugging her new egg, unable to keep from squeaking at intervals. It was a large, coppery egg with a few black freckles on top. "It's perfect! I can't wait till you hatch, little Storm!"

"Storm?" Taiyang looked at her. "You chose a name already?"

"Yep!" Ruby nodded. "I want my dragon to be named after Tempest, so I thought Storm would work. I thought of a few others, but Drizzle sounds too wimpy and Hurricane just makes it sound like I'm compensating, you know?"

Yang laughed. "Storm sounds nice. I think I'll hold off on naming my hatchling until after I meet it." She walked over to the eggs and placed a hand on the biggest one. "Go big, or go home, right Dad?"

Taiyang shook his head. "Size isn't everything, but that is definitely a promising egg." He clapped his hands once. "Well, you two had better get to bed. Mrs. Violet has volunteered to take you to get your eggs injected in the morning. It's about time the Dust started settling in. I'll stay here to make sure everything's safe."

Ruby nodded, placing her egg next to the others and kissing the shell. "Sleep well, Storm."

Yang patted her egg once more. "I don't know about you, sis, but I got a good feeling about this next year."

…

The journey to Beacon took several days. During this time, Blake hardly ate or slept. Her new hatchling was doing enough of that for the both of them.

Whenever it woke up, it opened its tiny jaws and barked and squawked and chirped until Blake gave it another mouthful of jerky. At first, she had to chew it up. By the third day, however, the dragonet started chewing small pieces on its own.

"You're just a bottomless pit, aren't you?" Blake sighed, watching her charge with half-lidded eyes.

The dragon tilted its silver-freckled head and squeaked.

"Hopefully, this plan won't land us both _in_ the pits…"

Another squeak.

Blake tilted her head at the hatchling. "What is it? Haven't you had enough?"

Yellow eyes blinked inquisitively at her. It was amazing how like hers they were.

"What did I say?" She paused. "Pit?"

The dragon bounded over, putting its front paws on her lap. It squeaked happily.

Blake stared at the tiny creature before letting out a snort. "Well, crap. I went and named you. I guess we're stuck together, Pit, for better or worse." Hoisting the cheerful creature onto her shoulder, she forced herself to her feet and continued walking.

She had to carry it on her shoulder, or in her arms, as her early attempts to carry it in her bag had ended with the dragon soiling the satchel, and most of their supplies, forcing her to dispose of all of it. She only had a pocketful of jerky left, and was determined to make it last.

When she finally got to Beacon, she was captured. It wasn't by accident: She knew that trying to sneak into Beacon would take too long, and would be nearly impossible while carrying Pit. Since leaving an egg on the doorstep was no longer the plain, she decided that being honest was her only option.

So, when the yellow-green wind dragon landed in front of her, bearing a rider with large goggles, green hair, and a crooked riding jacket, Blake calmly walked up. "I'd like to see Ozpin."

An hour later, she was sitting in a well-furnished office. Pit was curled up on her lap, tail twitching in agitation. A second door behind a desk opened, and Blake found herself staring at the face of Dragonmaster Ozpin.

He smiled at her and nodded at Pit as he sat down. Placing a coffee mug on his desk, he folded his hands. "If you had gone anywhere else, that hatchling would have already been killed," he said without preamble.

"I know." Blake placed a protective hand over Pit's back. The freckled earth dragon warbled nervously. "That's why I came here."

"I see." Ozpin took a sip from his coffee. "Why don't you start at the beginning?"

So, Blake told Ozpin all she knew about the White Fang. As most people knew, it had started as a peaceful organization with the purpose of attaining equal rights for the Faunus of Remnant. For many years, along with the usual acts of discrimination, Faunus were forbidden from studying dragons. No Faunus could attain a brood license. No Faunus could enroll at a dragonry. No Faunus could go near a dragon unless it was to clean stalls.

Around the same time places like Beacon started accepting Faunus students, the White Fang became more aggressive. Eggs were stolen. Technology from the Schnee Dust company was taken from transports. Faunus started using dragons to fight back. For many, that was simply proof that only humans should be allowed to control such creatures.

As reactions to the White Fang became more violent, its leaders decided to take drastic measures, and began injecting eggs with more than one kind of Dust in order to make hybrid dragons. Adam became convinced that such beasts were outlawed to keep control over the population, and that the Schnee Dust Company was directly involved, since they were the only ones legally allowed to inject eggs.

Blake admitted that she had gone along with his plans, up until the first death. The first hybrid had been one of fire and water. Steam had wafted from the creature's scales day and night, until breathing nothing but moist air caused its lungs to collapse. The next had been a lightning dragon. Its first time touching metal had quickly ended its life.

Yet, Adam refused to stop. Dragons either lived short lives if they held promise, or were killed immediately if they didn't. Unable to watch the abuse any longer, Blake left with an egg, hoping that she could send the authorities after her former comrades, for the sake of the suffering dragons.

Ozpin examined Pit, brows furrowed with distaste as he took in Blake's story. "It seems that, ironically, the dragons that he didn't find strong enough were the ones most likely to survive," he murmured. "Whatever the other type of Dust used was, it was a small amount. This is still mostly an earth dragon, and few will likely be able to tell otherwise."

"So, he won't be killed on sight?"

"Not if I can help it," Ozpin declared. "You have brought me some valuable information. So, I have a proposition for you: I will begin a search for the White Fang and send as many Riders out as I can. In exchange, I would like the opportunity to examine your friend. You will study here in the meantime, and learn how to care for him."

Blake's back stiffened. _Does he mean…?_ "You're going to train me to be a Dragon Rider?" she breathed. Her cat ears twitched as she stared down at Pit.

For years, she had wondered what it would be like to be a Rider, defending Remnant from the Grimm with her life partner. Yet, it had never been a possibility. Now…

"Okay," she replied, managing to keep her voice under control. "On one condition: I want to be enrolled as a human. I'll hide my ears."

Ozpin frowned. "You don't need to hide yourself at Beacon. Faunus students-"

"-are a minority," Blake finished. "Even if you see us as equals, others won't. Also, with the White Fang after me and Pit being a hybrid, I don't want to draw more attention to myself."

Ozpin looked at her for a long moment, then sighed. "Very well." He smiled a little as he looked at the dragon. "So, Pit is his name?"

"Yeah. He's a male dragon?" Telling the sex of a dragon was very difficult, and could usually only be done by breeders. Blake wasn't even sure if Adam knew that Brand was a male.

"Yes, not that it matters much." Ozpin stood up. "I've had a trainee room prepared for you. Don't get too used to the space, though. Your three teammates and their dragons will be living there in a little while."

Blake stood up, smiling when Pit immediately crawled up to her shoulder. "Thank you, sir."

"No, Miss Belladonna," Ozpin said, gently stroking Pit's head. "Thank _you_."

…..

On the night before her departure, Weiss went to Glacier's stable one last time. She held onto the hope that the Faunus stable hand might not have patched the hole in the wall after all.

When she got there, of course, the dried cement proved her wrong. She placed a hand on the wall, trying to listen for the ice dragon's familiar keening. Then, eyes steeled with determination, she crept around the wall and to the front door. She hesitated for only a moment before pushing the large door aside and slipping in.

No one was there. The stable hands had all gone home for the night. There, in a stall at the end of the barn, was Glacier.

The air was cold and silent as Weiss closed the distance between the entrance and the stone platform. In the faint moonlight that trickled through the windows, she could see a metal collar attached to a thick chain. Her father put it on every night, to keep the dragon from escaping or lashing out. The ice dragon's eyes were closed as she approached.

"Hello, Glacier," she murmured, smiling at the thin, snowy face. "I'm leaving in the morning. I…I wanted to see you one last time before I left."

Glacier opened one deep blue eye and stared up at her. A low keen rose in his throat.

Weiss knelt on the ground, glaring at the chain. "It really does sound like you're crying." She placed a hand on the dragon's snout. "I wish I could-"

Just as her hand touched the frosty scales, however, there was a sudden drop in temperature. Glacier's head shot up and he let out a loud, haunting cry that sounded like the wailing of a thousand ghosts.

Weiss jumped aside, backing away until she felt the cold, stone wall. She stared, eyes wide, as Glacier tossed his head back and forth, rattling the collar and hissing like he was possessed by some demon. Snarling, he lunged toward Weiss, causing his chain to creak.

Then, a warm hand grabbed her arm, pulling her to the door and out into the night air. She took in deep breaths, trying to expel the frost from her lungs, when she saw who had saved her. It was the old Faunus stable hand. His pointed ears were twitching.

"Shouldn't have gone in there, missy," he muttered. "He gets really irritable at night."

Weiss panted, shaking her head. "He…He attacked me…"

"Of course he did," the Faunus said, mopping his brow with a handkerchief. "That's what ice dragons do. They're unstable and fierce when their handler isn't around, even if they know you."

Weiss folded her arms across her front, shivering as she thought of the white-blue egg that was being packed away for her journey in the morning. She swallowed a few times before managing to shakily nod at the stable hand. "Thank you, um…"

"Rusty." The man flicked an ear and smiled. "I won't tell your daddy, but you'd best get home. And leave the dragon-handling to me, at least until you learn a few things from Ozpin. Okay?"

"Yes… Thank you again." Weiss could barely return the smile, and walked back home in a daze.

 _I always thought Father was exaggerating… But, if ice dragons really are unstable, should I really be going to Beacon with one?_ She thought of the egg, and how excited she had been until this point.

Then, she took a resolute breath and shook her head. _No. I can handle it. My dragon will only be a danger to Grimm. I'll make sure of it._

Just the same, when she went to bed that night, the sound of Glacier's unholy wails echoed in her head for hours.

 **Coming up with names for all of the dragons has been a fun part of making this story. Pit's name honestly came as I was first typing this chapter, but it fit pretty well. I'll see you next week! In the meantime, happy holidays!**

 **Commissions are still open with two slots. PM me for details.**

 **If you wish to pledge to my P/atreon, my username is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	6. Waiting for the Airship

**Greetings, my lovely dragon-lovers! This is the beginning of the weekly updates to this fic. This chapter is a little shorter, but it does bring our other freshman teams into the fray and gives some more world-building.**

 **This week's dragon recommendation is a slightly-strange one: "The Last Dragon Chronicles" by Chris d'Lacey. I'm not going to say it's a** _ **good**_ **series per say, but it's a very interesting series that I found myself utterly hooked on in high school. What makes it different is the fact that d'Lacey used what he calls "organic writing," which essentially means that he just sat down and made stuff up as he typed, barely editing before sending it out. The result is a seven-book story that almost reads like a dream sequence. Things come out of nowhere and are sometimes never mentioned again, characters change personalities or become very exaggerated, and things are revealed that you definitely wouldn't expect in a million years. The dragons are consistently awesome, however. I don't know. As a writer, I found it to be a bizarre and fascinating read.**

 **Anyhoo, enjoy!**

"Did you remember your nausea medication?"

"Yes, Mom."

"Your warm pajamas?"

"Yes, Mom."

"Your bunny slippers?"

" _Mom!_ " Jaune groaned. "I'm fine."

"Right, sorry," Mrs. Arc murmured as she fussed with her son's hoodie. "Okay, be careful and call often."

"You're gonna do great," Mr. Arc added, giving Jaune's shoulder a firm shake. "You'll have the biggest, toughest dragon in all of Remnant, just like your granddad. I can just feel it."

Jaune smiled shakily. "I'd be fine with one the size of Ignis," he murmured, referring to his father's spirited fire dragon.

"Of course you will," Mrs. Arc assured him. "You'll be fine no matter what, because you and your dragon will take care of each other." She kissed his forehead. "Make sure to send pictures once it hatches. You know the girls will want to see."

"Will do." Jaune grinned as he thought back to an hour ago, when he had been saying goodbye to his sisters. Little Jenny had clung to his leg while the others shoved gifts into his hands and argued over what kind of dragon he would get. It had taken fifteen minutes just to get from the door to his parents' car.

After several more hugs, Jaune finally got his father to close the car doors. He stood back from the road, waving as his parents drove away. Taking a deep breath, he picked up his bag and walked toward the airship stop.

Several other people his age were also waiting, holding their own bags. He passed a group of boys, one of whom snickered and pointed at the large bunny on Jaune's hoodie. Jaune blushed and hurried on, wondering whether he should have chosen something else to wear.

He hesitated, glancing at the various people, wondering if there was anyone he could start a conversation with. There was a monkey Faunus talking with an overly-cool looking guy with blue hair. _Eh. I'd probably say something stupid._ There was a tall, intimidating young man with tattoos who was listening to a flamboyant, red-haired boy. _The red-haired one doesn't look so bad…but his friend looks kinda stern._ A little ways off, a boy in green was nodding slowly in response to the rapid-fire words of his short, ginger companion. _Hm. Maybe._

Then, Jaune's gaze fell on someone who was standing all alone. She was a tall, red-haired girl who stood a distance away from the other groups. The first thing Jaune noticed, besides her fire-colored hair and awesome headpiece, was the fact that she regarded everything with a very open, friendly expression. He wondered why no one was talking to her already.

 _Well, here goes nothing,_ he thought, walking over. "Uh, hey. You going to Beacon too?" As he spoke, he realized how lame his question sounded. _Of course she's going to Beacon. Everyone at this stop is going to Beacon, idiot!_

The girl blinked, looking surprised that someone was talking to her, but the expression was quickly replaced with a welcoming smile. "Yes, actually. You?"

"Yep. It took forever to shake my parents off, though."

"I noticed. It's nice that your family is so concerned." The girl held out a hand. "My name's Pyrrha."

Jaune readily shook her hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Jaune." He paused, tilting his head. "Hm. Your name sounds kinda familiar. Did you go to school here?"

"No, I'm from Mistral. I arrived in Vale just yesterday." Pyrrha shrugged. "Maybe my name is more common here."

"I've never met another Pyrrha," a new voice chirped. In a second, the ginger girl zipped over, followed more slowly by her friend. "But I totally saw you on TV a million times! You're Pyrrha Nikos, the dragon wrangler, right?"

"Nora!" the green-clad young man said sternly as he approached. "Maybe she didn't want people to know that."

"Who wouldn't know, though?" Nora asked. "She was on Pumpkin Pete's cereal box like all of last year."

Jaune gasped. "Wait, I remember now! I don't watch much TV, so I didn't realize." He tilted his head. "Dragon wrangling… What exactly is that?"

Pyrrha glanced at the ground. "Well, it basically involves capturing and subduing wild dragons. Since I'm one of the younger ones, the television stations picked up on my exploits and started filming them."

Jaune frowned. "It's, uh, not like cage fighting, is it?" he asked. When he was little he had seen a dragon cage match playing on one of the televisions at his friend's house. Wild dragons and maddened elemental dragons were put in cages and fought to the death. Sometimes, people would fight against them. He had had nightmare for weeks.

"No!" Pyrrha shook her head vigorously. "It's nothing like that. I've actually been to several protests against cage fights. Wrangling is the process of capturing a wild dragon for breeding. Some brooderies prefer wild dragons, or need new blood. That's what wranglers are for."

"Oh." Jaune's shoulders relaxed. "Well, that's pretty cool. I've never really been around wild dragons, just my dad's fire dragon."

"Your father's a Rider? Did he train at Beacon?" Pyrrha asked, relieved that the conversation was steering away from her.

"He went to Haven, actually," Jaune explained. "But, he said that the resources there weren't as great as they are at Beacon. Still, he got Ignis out of it." He shifted as he thought of the excitable dragon. "I hope I don't end up with a fire dragon. Not sure I'd be able to handle it."

"I want a wind dragon," the ginger girl piped up. "They're so fast! Or maybe a fire dragon…"

The boy with her rolled his eyes. "She's Nora, and I'm Ren, by the way."

Nora pouted. "I was gonna introduce myself in a second."

"I'm Jaune." Jaune grinned at the two. "You're more gutsy than me, Nora. I definitely couldn't handle a wind dragon."

Nora rolled her eyes. "Well, you just excluded half the dragon types."

Jaune shrugged. "I, uh, get airsickness really easily, so I'm kinda hoping for a calmer dragon."

At that moment, the monkey Faunus approached, followed closely by his blue-haired friend. "Hey. Are we talking about dragon types over here? I'm hoping for a wind dragon."

His friend laughed nervously. "I'm good with an earth dragon. Or a fire dragon. Or a wind dragon…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm pretty sure dragons can smell fear, so I doubt a water one would go near me."

"Not a fan of water?" Jaune asked.

"Eh, no." The boy shook his head. "I fell into a bog in Mistral when I was a kid. I've been kinda leery of the water since then."

The monkey Faunus snorted. "Kinda leery? That's the understatement of the century."

"What about you, Pyrrha?" Jaune asked, turning back to her. "Any preferences?"

Pyrrha shook her head. "I'm just going to let the chips fall where they may. I don't mind fate deciding."

"Is that why you don't have your own egg?" Nora asked. "Being a wrangler, it probably would've been easy."

"It would have," Pyrrha allowed. "But, I'd rather be surprised. I really don't have a preference. Besides, I've heard a lot about the hatching process. Apparently, they line the students in front of the eggs, and the hatchlings choose." She smiled at the thought. "I guess I like the idea of a dragon specifically choosing me out of everyone else, you know?"

Jaune bit his lip. "Um, have you heard whether there have been cases of people not getting chosen at all?"

Pyrrha shook her head, smiling gently. "I'm sure you'll be just fine. You got in, didn't you?"

The two newcomers introduced themselves as Sun and Neptune. Sun grinned at them. "So, speaking of getting in, which test did you guys take as your second exam? Combat or sight?"

Almost everyone responded with "Combat." Only Jaune replied with a shy "Sight."

His face flushed when the others turned to look at him. He wondered if he should have lied, but figured that it wouldn't have done any good. They would have realized that he wasn't exactly a fighter once they got to Beacon.

Being accepted into Beacon Dragonry involved two exams. The first was a written exam that tested basic knowledge concerning dragons. People who passed that test were then given two choices: combat or sight. The combat test involved showing off one's fighting skills against various professors. It was the most common method that people chose, since most potential Riders were trained in some form of combat.

The sight test, which Jaune had chosen to take, was something very different and very strange. He had entered a large, circular arena at the Dragonry, near the stables, which was painted to look like a compass. The hundreds of seats that had a view of the arena were empty. Four people and four dragons waited for him in the arena itself, one pair at each point of the compass.

At the southern point stood a large, portly man with a mustache. A stocky orange fire dragon stood at his side, wearing what looked like a lazy smirk on its muzzle. Its eyes were an intelligent amber color. At the western point was a woman with a sharp expression, and a pale blue water dragon that gazed at everything passively with milky eyes. At the eastern point stood a green-haired man with thick glasses and twitching hands. His dragon was a yellow-green wind dragon with a constantly-flicking tail. Finally, at the northern point, beside an ancient-looking, gray-brown earth dragon, was Dragonmaster Ozpin himself.

Jaune had stood in the center of the ring, trying not to tremble under the silent gazes of the four dragons and their riders. Then, behind him, he heard the fire dragon mutter something to its partner. Then, the water dragon whispered to the woman. Then, the wind dragon added its voice. Finally, the earth dragon drew itself up and nodded its head once.

Ozpin then smiled and said "Congratulations, young man. You have been accepted into Beacon."

Jaune's knees shook for hours after that experience.

He tried, and probably failed, to describe what had happened, and how powerful it had been. There was a moment of silence while the others looked at each other.

"So…the dragons just stared at you, and decided you were okay?" Sun laughed. "Maybe I should've gone with that one. Sounds way easier."

"I don't think it is," Pyrrha murmured. "I have a feeling that the dragons are far more selective than a combat test would be. Dragons are incredible judges of character." She looked at Jaune, admiration in her eyes. "They clearly saw something in you that told them you'd be a great Dragon Rider."

Jaune stood up a little straighter. "You think?"

"I'm sure of it." Pyrrha looked up. "Looks like the airship is coming. Would you like to sit next to me, Jaune?"

"Sure!" Jaune replied eagerly, glad that he hadn't presented himself as being totally lame to these new people.

The students all followed her gaze as the airship came to a landing. Jaune took a deep breath, discreetly popped an extra nausea pill for good measure, and hoped that Pyrrha's reassuring words would turn out to be right.

 **Why is Team SSSN going to Beacon? Because I wanted them to, that's why! I like giving Neptune actual depth, and it looks like Sage and Scarlet will never get the screentime they deserve in canon, so why not have fun with them here?**

 **If you like what you see and want to show some extra support, please consider pledging to my P/atreon, which is Solora Goldsun.**

 **As always, praise Monty and peace out!**


	7. Arriving at Beacon

**Good afternoon, my lovelies! You know, I'm really glad I decided to update this fic weekly here. The canon-verse is starting to leave a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, and I honestly think that many of the AUs on this site are doing a better job of actually showing and developing these characters than Rooster Teeth is. I'll spare you a rant, though. I ranted enough in my recent update of "The Fate of Remnant."**

 **My recommendation of the week is a series that I've only read the first book of (since the library system in my hometown sucks). This book stands out to me because it is a love story between a human and a dragon. A pretty believable love story, I might add. I'm talking about a trilogy called "The Tales of Lanen Kaelar" by Elizabeth Kerner. I've only read the first book, "Song in the Silence," but I hope to get my hands on the others soon.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Ruby's heart was soaring and racing every bit as much as Tempest was as they flew through the air. Yang sat behind her, ready to take the reins if necessary, but knowing that she likely wouldn't have to. A few dragon-lengths away, Taiyang rode on Quake, who also bore the padded carrier that held Ruby and Yang's eggs.

Both girls kept stealing glances toward the carrier. The heat pads they had used for the eggs had been regularly adjusted, so that they were set to hatch the following day, just like the Beacon eggs that would be given to the other students.

It took all of Ruby's self-control to keep from bouncing up and down in the saddle. _I can't believe it! I'm going to Beacon. I'm going to Beacon right now!_

Yang, sensing her sister's excitement, hugged her lightly from behind. "Easy, sis," she called through the wind. "Save the squealing for when we land."

"I know, I know," Ruby replied. "I just can't believe this is really happening! We're gonna be the best Dragon Rider team of all time!"

"Don't forget, we'll be with two other people," Yang said. "You're gonna actually need to socialize."

"Nope!" Ruby declared. "I'll just become friends with their dragons and let them put in a good word for me."

Yang rolled her eyes. "You probably could pull that off," she sighed, laughing a little.

When Beacon came into view through the clouds, both girls fell silent. Tall, white, and magnificent, it reflected the rays of the sun, striking the eyes with a golden radiance. The forms of dragons could be seen flying in the distance.

Tempest let out a loud roar and started to fly faster. She remembered this place. This was where she had hatched. For a moment, her memory brought forth a familiar face shrouded with a white hood. Her fins drooped for a second, but she quickly fanned them out again. She was carrying Summer's children, after all. She couldn't afford to be distracted.

The two dragons landed. Quake sniffed the air and scratched eagerly at the ground as he, like Tempest, smelled his old hatching place nearby.

Taiyang patted Quake's neck before sliding off. "Okay, pal. You can walk around once we get everything unloaded." He turned to his daughters. "Why don't you two walk Tempest around? I'll take your eggs to the hatchery and fill out the paperwork. The tour starts in an hour, so you have plenty of time to start getting acquainted with your new home."

Ruby jumped off of Tempest's back. "Omigosh! Yang, look! That's gotta be the elemental stables. Oooh, and there's a flight obstacle course!" Ruby bounced around, staring at everything with starry eyes.

Yang grabbed the back of her sister's hood to keep her still. "Hold up, sis. Don't run in circles, or you'll be asleep for the tour!" She grinned at Taiyang. "You go ahead. I'll keep her from running into a wall."

Taiyang laughed. "Looking at you two reminds me of my first day here." He hugged both of them. "Quake and I will find you and say goodbye before we leave. Walk Tempest around the courtyard, but stay away from the stables. The other dragons might react badly to a newcomer."

"Dad, we know," Yang groaned.

"Right, right. Just making sure." Taiyang walked with Quake toward the hatchery.

Tempest, meanwhile, was practically dancing on her small feet, waiting for Ruby and Yang to start walking. "Rrroo! Ang! Com!"

Ruby laughed. "Okay, girl. Why don't you show us where to go?"

Tempest bobbed her head and set off at a brisk pace across the courtyard. Ruby and Yang had to jog to keep up. The wind dragon walked with a bounce in her step and eagerly sniffed the air, appreciating the old and new smells of her childhood home. The earth and surrounding air were the same, as were most of the buildings. However, the dragon smells were almost entirely new. The only one she recognized was the slightest trace of an ancient earth dragon. His scent alone caused her wings to shake and her head fins to lower in submission. "Rrrak-nnnar," she whispered.

Yang looked up. "Raknar? Who's that?"

"Oh, that's Ozpin's dragon, Ragnar," Ruby replied. "Remember? He was there when Ozpin talked to me."

"Wow. He must be old if Tempest remembers him." Yang patted the wind dragon's shoulder. "It's kinda cool, huh? Going to school where our parents went. Seeing our dragons hatch in the same place Quake, Tempest, Salty, and Phoenix hatched."

As she named her mother's dragon, her thoughts went to her own fire egg. She had the fireproof satchel at her side, ready for when her dragonet came into the world. _Will I be anything like my mom?_ she wondered. For all Raven's faults, anyone who had known her agreed that she was an incredible Dragon Rider.

Ruby noticed her sister's expression and nudged her side. "Hey. We'll do great. I know it!"

Yang shook herself and grinned at Ruby. "Of course we will! The Grimm should be shaking in their stupid skull masks."

Ruby started to say something else, but her words turned into an excited squeak as she pointed. "Sis, look! A Rider team! Look at those dragons!"

Yang turned just in time to see four dragons landing in the field to the left of the courtyard. "Hey, they look like upperclassmen. Let's say hi."

"Okay, but you do the talking," Ruby insisted. She walked eagerly toward the dragons, clicking once to Tempest to get her to follow.

The upperclassmen team had started moving toward the stables, but paused when they saw the girls and dragon approaching. One of them, a girl who had just replaced her removed riding goggles with a set of shades, strode over, grinning easily. "Hey. Are you transfer students? You look a little young." She glanced at Ruby. "No offense."

"None taken," Yang replied. "We're actually first-years. This is our mom's dragon, Tempest."

Tempest nodded her head once, letting out a warble of greeting in the direction of the other dragons.

The girl lowered her shades and eyed Tempest. "Ah, right. Now that I look at it, this dragon is a bit older than ours." She nodded slowly. "Well, she's a beauty. Tell your mom she did a good job."

Ruby smiled. "Will do." She looked over the girl's shoulder. "Um, is it okay if we meet your dragons?"

The girl nodded. "Sure thing." She whistled, calling over a deep bronze fire dragon with bright orange eyes and short black horns. "This guy is Java. Say hi, Java."

Java's small ears twitched with excitement. "Hi!" He leaned close, sniffing both girls. He blew a hot puff of air across Ruby's face. "Gud mell." Good smell.

Ruby giggled, scratching under the fire dragon's chin. "Thanks, boy. Aren't you gorgeous?"

Java snorted, bobbing his head happily.

His rider laughed. "Don't compliment him too much. His head's big enough. I'm Coco, by the way. Come and meet the others." She led Ruby and Yang toward her team. "You must be totally hyped, huh?" she asked. "I remember when I was a freshie just a year ago. Nothing quite like seeing your dragon for the first time, you know?"

"I can't wait!" Ruby said, forgetting about her earlier plan to let Yang do the talking. It was much easier to talk when dragons were the subject, after all. "How advanced do the flying lessons get?"

"They're pretty boring during the first year," Coco said. "It's all about staying in formation and adjusting to wind patterns. We're gonna start on some more advanced stuff this year, though."

Ruby was then introduced to Velvet, a slightly-timid rabbit Faunus who led a gorgeous, cream-colored wind dragon with soft green eyes. "This is Meringue." She looked over Ruby's shoulder. "Um, may I introduce her to your mother's dragon?"

"Sure," Ruby replied. "Tempest is super friendly. She helps out with the hatchlings before my dad has to sell them."

"Oh, you're from a broodery? That's amazing!" Velvet led Meringue over to Tempest.

Ruby took a moment to appreciate the differences between the older and younger dragons. Meringue's head fins were larger in comparison to her still-growing head, and her wings looked more awkward as they sat on her back. Tempest, on the other hand, was the very definition of grace as she touched noses with the cream-colored dragon.

Yang, meanwhile, was getting acquainted with Yatsuhashi, a larger, quiet young man who led a red-brown earth dragon with dark brown eyes. "Behave yourself, Mocha," he murmured to the dragon before looking at Yang. "She can be nervous around strangers," he explained. "She seems to like you, though."

"I probably smell like my dad's earth dragon," Yang said, giving Mocha's nose a light pat.

Mocha huffed loudly, but didn't back away. She sniffed Yang's hair curiously and let out a cautious purr.

The last Rider was a blind man named Fox. Ruby was only slightly surprised when she noticed his eyes. Blind Riders weren't unheard of, as dragons were very adaptable and often learned to see for their partners when necessary. His dragon was a dark blue, almost black water dragon with deep green eyes. "This is Trifle," he said in a quiet voice.

Trifle bent his head to examine the newcomers. "Nnnice," he decided promptly.

Ruby stroked the tendrils coming from the dragon's snout. "I like the theme you guys have with the names."

Coco laughed. "Well, since our team name is "coffee," and most of our names have to do with desserts, we figured our dragons should get on board." She ruffled Fox's hair. "Now, all we need is for Foxy here to change his name."

Fox, clearly used to this treatment, swatted lightly at Coco's hand. "Not happening."

Coco grinned, then turned back to Ruby and Yang. "Well, we're gonna head to the stables. Two freshmen are fine, but if we keep hanging around, the airship will come and we'll be freaking mobbed. Good luck!" The team waved and led their dragons toward the stable area.

"Bye!" Ruby called. She looked at Yang, grinning excitedly. "This is going to be so awesome!"

Yang nodded. "Yeah. And look at you socializing."

Ruby shrugged, glancing to the side. "It's easier with dragons around…"

Yang laughed. "Well, we'll just carry your dragon with us everywhere, and you should be fine." She peered over her sister's shoulder. "There's Dad and Quake."

The girls ran back over to Taiyang, who hugged them both in turn. "Everything's arranged. Just wait here for the airship, and you'll be taken for your tour. Talk to Glynda Goodwitch afterward, and she'll tell you where to go for your hatching tomorrow." He looked fondly at them, breathing a sigh. "You're going to do so well." He hugged them both once more. "Remember, you can always call home if you need anything. And write often, okay?"

"Okay, Dad," Yang said, leaning into Taiyang. Then, she walked over to Quake. "Take care of things for me, old man."

Quake snorted loudly, then leaned in to nuzzle Yang's front. "Ang. Be gud."

"Hey, who's my dad here? Him or you?" Yang hugged the large earth dragon around the neck. "See ya, buddy."

Ruby, meanwhile, was looking up at Tempest. This was the one part of coming to Beacon that she had been dreading. Ever since Summer's death, Tempest had essentially chosen Ruby as her companion. Since Ruby first learned how to walk, she had spent practically every day with the mighty wind dragon. Would Tempest even be able to function without her?

"Hey, girl," she murmured, touching Tempest's nose. "I need to stay here, okay? I'm going to learn to be a Dragon Rider, like Mom and Dad. You understand, right?"

Tempest lowered her head, letting out a low moaning noise. Her eyes were downcast and sad. "Rrroo. Go," she sighed, closing her eyes as Ruby rubbed her forehead.

"Yeah. I have to go." Ruby blinked back tears as she hugged the wind dragon tightly. "I'll be back, though. I'll have my own wind dragon. You'll have to teach it everything you know, okay?"

"Rrroo safe," Tempest murmured, moving back to fix her gaze on the small human. "Safe. Gud?"

Ruby nodded vigorously. "Yes, Tempest. I'll stay safe. I promise." She kissed Tempest's snout. "Take good care of Dad, Quake, and the others, okay?"

"Rrroo," Tempest sighed, then turned toward Yang. "Ang. Safe." She backed away as Taiyang got on Quake's back. "Bye."

"Bye, girl!" Ruby waved as the two dragons ran through the courtyard, effortlessly taking to the sky. Tears streamed down her cheeks as Tempest glanced over her shoulder one last time before disappearing into the clouds.

Yang hurriedly wiped her own eyes, then gave Ruby's shoulder a shake. "Hey. Come on, lighten up. The airship's coming."

Ruby sniffled, rubbing her face against her sleeve and forcing a smile. "They'll be okay, right?"

Yang nodded. "Of course they will. Now, let's go meet our future classmates. I'll do the talking."

They approached the airship as several people their age came off. One of the boys immediately bolted to a nearby trashcan. "Think he's another student?" Ruby asked.

Yang snorted. "I hope not. If he can't handle an airship, there's no way he'll handle a dragon."

Ruby noticed another wind dragon flying a distance away. "Ooh, look at-OW!" She took a hurried step forward, only to run smack into someone else.

"Oof!"

Ruby fell back, hearing a thump as the person she had run into did the same. "Ow… I'm sorry." She looked to see a dark-haired boy sitting up, a dazed look on his face. A small girl with ginger hair stood near him.

"See, Ren? _You_ ran into someone. I didn't."

"Only because you were dragging me," the boy groaned, rubbing his head. "Sorry about that," he added, nodding at Ruby.

"Oh, it's fine. I technically ran into you." Yang helped Ruby up while the ginger girl helped the boy up. "I'm Ruby. This is my sister Yang."

"Hi!" the ginger girl chirped. "I'm Nora, and the klutz is Ren."

Ren rolled his eyes at her.

"So," Nora continued without skipping a beat. "Are you new students too? Are you gonna be Riders? What dragon are you hoping to get? I want a wind dragon, because I wanna be super fast like whoosh, you know?"

"Totally!" Ruby replied eagerly. "I have a wind dragon egg, and can't wait for it to hatch!"

"You got your own egg? Lucky!" Nora's turquoise eyes were wide with awe. "You guys totally have to walk with us on the tour! Wait, if you're sisters, do you both have eggs?" She looked at Yang. "What do you got?"

"Fire," Yang replied.

"Wow, you're brave! Fire dragons are scary. They're awesome too. They're scary-awesome. If I don't get a wind dragon, I want a fire dragon! Ooh, Ren look at that!" In an instant, Nora was gone.

"Nora, hold still for a second!" Ren called after her. He gave Ruby and Yang an apologetic look. "Nice meeting you. See you when the tour starts. Nora!" He ran after his friend, panting a little.

Yang watched them go before smiling at Ruby. "See, sis? Making friends with non-dragons is easy."

Ruby shrugged. "I don't think everyone's that nice. Well, maybe we'll end up on a team with them."

"Only if they get an earth and a water dragon," Yang said. "Even then, it's iffy. We'll probably be paired with whoever else already has eggs."

"Oh yeah." Ruby pouted. "I guess it wasn't gonna be that easy."

Yang laughed. "Come on, sis. Did you really think you'd just get to meet our teammates, and then no one else?"

"I can hope, right?"

At that moment, they were interrupted by the arrival of a familiar water dragon. Its pale blue scales shimmered in the sunlight. It blinked its milk-colored eyes, regarding the new students calmly. Several people let out excited gasps. A squeal that likely came from Nora could be heard.

Glynda Goodwitch slid from her dragon's back, regarding the new arrivals with an unreadable expression. "Welcome to Beacon Dragonry," she began. "My name is Glynda Goodwitch. This is my partner, Nautilus, who I first met right here." She indicated the expansive grounds and school behind her. "We grew here, trained here, and became a true team here. Those of you gathered here today, I assume, have the same goal."

There was some shifting and murmuring in the crowd as the new students stared at Nautilus. In the daylight, Ruby was able to appreciate just how beautiful the creature was. His webbed feet had sharp, white talons. The gills on his neck opened and closed while the various webs and tendrils on his head seemed to move on their own. Wings like sails were folded neatly at his sides. A wide, flat tail sat motionless on the ground, but would likely cause the earth to rupture with a hard enough hit.

"Being a Dragon Rider is more than just fighting Grimm and riding dragons," Glynda continued. "It is about the bond you will form with your partner, and with your teammates. The people and dragons you meet here will likely be the ones fighting alongside you for the rest of your life. This is a time to be cherished, and taken very seriously." Her eyes flashed, as if she doubted the ability of the gathered students to take anything seriously. "We will begin with a tour of the grounds. Stay close."

She started on a path leading toward the stables. The students filed after her, stealing glances at the passive Nautilus. Ruby and Yang waited until most of the others had passed. Then, Ruby took a step toward the water dragon.

"Hi, there. Remember me?"

Nautilus blinked a pale eye and snorted. His face remained passive. He waited for the two girls to follow, then took a position at the end of the tour group, clearly appointed to keep people from straying.

"These first few buildings hold Beacon's brood dragons. All of our school elemental dragons are hatched from these parents. They are checked regularly for illnesses, and are cared for by an extensive staff."

The barns were large and made almost entirely of stone. The doors were wide open, and the stalls were uncommonly huge, Ruby noticed.

"Excuse me?" a sharp voice spoke up. A girl with white hair was staring critically around the building.

"Yes?" Glynda asked.

"Couldn't you fit more dragons in here? The stalls are much larger than the standard size."

"According to the law, we could fit more dragons into the barns," Glynda replied. "However, Dragonmaster Ozpin believes that certain expenses are worth the extra comfort of our dragons."

Glynda's tone wasn't reprimanding at all, but there was a tightening around the girl's eyes in response nonetheless.

The tour continued to the elemental barns. Each one was specifically made to cater to each species. The wind barn was built into the nearby cliffs and had wide, open windows on each stall, as well as a huge ramp that allowed for easy take-off. The water barn was built next to a lake, and had misters keeping the entire area moist. Moss grew on the stones and a fishy aroma permeated the air. The fire barn was in a wide space with no grass or trees. Charred earth marked the land, and everything was made of stone or metal. The earth barn, which was closest to the school itself, was made of a mixture of stone, dirt, and wood. Mud pits sat in the back, and a few brown and gray dragons were wallowing peacefully.

"During your first semester, your dragons will remain with you in your dorm rooms, which were specially-made to accommodate you, your teammates, and all four of your dragons," Glynda said after they left the earth barn. "By your second semester, your dragons will be big enough to be moved to the appropriate barns. You will be expected to take care of them. We have staff at the elemental barns, but care for the elemental dragons are primarily the responsibility of their partners. Shirking that responsibility will result in severe disciplinary action. Next, we'll look at the-"

"ARGH!" A loud yell, followed by a dull splash, caused everyone to spin around.

Someone was floundering in one of the deep mud pits, sputtering loudly and shouting for help. A red-haired girl was just starting to climb over the fence near the pit. Glynda took a step toward the fence, but stopped when one of the nearby earth dragons lifted its head. It extended an arm, carefully picking up the brown-coated figure with a clawed hand and placing it on the ground on the other side of the fence. The beast snorted in what seemed to be an amused manner.

"Omigosh, are you okay?" Ruby, who was nearby, rushed over to the boy, who was groaning and trying to wipe mud from his eyes. Using the sleeve of her flannel, she wiped his face off. A pair of bright blue eyes blinked up at her, and she caught a glimpse of blond hair. The red-haired girl came down from the fence and ran over, her eyes alight with concern.

"Ugh… Thanks," the boy muttered.

"You need to be careful," the red-haired girl said, her voice gently admonishing. "Those pits are deeper than they look."

"I noticed."

Nearby, several people were snickering. There was a group of brawny, smirking boys who were particularly obvious about their glee. Ruby glared at them.

Glynda, meanwhile, let out a long sigh. "Nautilus, if you would…"

The water dragon yawned as he walked over. He took a breath, then let it out in a gentle flood of clear water from his mouth. Both Ruby and the boy were thoroughly drenched. A blue-haired boy yelped and jumped away from the stream.

Ruby shook her hair out, laughing. "Thanks, boy." She stood up, helping the drenched boy up. Looking at him clearly, she recognized the kid who had thrown up near the airship. "Hi, I'm Ruby."

The boy shook water from his hair. "Jaune. Nice to meet you." He stared at the ground. "Uh, is everyone still looking at me?"

"Of course not," the red-haired girl lied before smiling at Ruby. "My name is Pyrrha."

"Okay, everyone. Let's move on!" Glynda called impatiently, turning and walking back up the path.

A few people snickered as they walked by. Some, however, lingered. Nora zipped over immediately.

"Were you trying to get a closer look? That's totally something I'd do."

Jaune grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, that's basically it."

The group started walking again, though the white-haired girl hung back, looking at Pyrrha with a smile. "Did I hear you correctly when you said your name was Pyrrha?"

Pyrrha smiled politely. "Yes, you did."

"As in Pyrrha Nikos?"

"Yes."

The girl's smile widened. "Weiss Schnee. It's a pleasure to meet someone with such a distinguished background. I hope we end up on the same team."

Pyrrha nodded. "That would be grand, I'm sure."

Ruby ran over. "Wait, you're a Schnee? Does that mean you have an ice dragon? Can I meet it when it hatches? I've never seen one before! Oh, I'm Ruby!" She held out her hand, grinning eagerly.

Weiss looked at her hand without taking it. "You may see it, but I doubt anyone outside of my team will be able to meet it. Ice dragons are very temperamental." She glanced over her shoulder. "The tour seems to be leaving without us." Without another word, she nodded toward Pyrrha and walked off.

Ruby lowered her hand with a sigh while Yang patted her shoulder. "Cheer up, sis. Not everyone's gonna be friendly when you meet them."

"Yeah," Ruby sighed. "But I just realized something: She's got her own ice dragon egg. That means she'll probably be on our team." She looked up at Yang. "So, we'd better hope she's nice."

Yang's shoulders slumped as she realized that her sister was right. "Oh… Yeah. We probably should hope for that, huh?"

Pyrrha smiled encouragingly as they started walking again. "I'm sure things will be just fine for everyone. Remember, whatever else happens, we'll have our dragons."

The others nodded in agreement, and grew silent as they thought of the following day, when they would finally meet their partners for the first time.

 **I really do enjoy naming these dragons! In this universe, names commonly relate to the dragon's element, but don't necessarily have to. There is a relation for CFVY's dragons, however. Java is coffee, which is hot like fire. Mocha is chocolate, which comes from a plant. Meringue is a light pastry made by whipping air into egg whites. Trifle is a layered dessert made of fruit and cake, and is very moist.**

 **Next week will be the chapters you've all been waiting for: The characters are going to get their dragon partners!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	8. The Hatching (Team RWBY)

**It's time, everyone! The hatching is here. In any dragon story, the moment when a dragon hatches is one of the most important parts. Therefore, to keep from skimming over anything, I split the hatching into three chapters. The first will focus on Team RWBY, the second will be Team JNPR, and the third will be Team SSSN.**

 **My recommendation this week is a shorter children's book by Bruce Coville, "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher." It's a story from a series of books about a magic shop. This one, of course, focuses on a boy who buys a dragon egg and tries to hatch and raise it in secret. It's a nice, heartwarming boy and his dragon story. Nothing else to say, really. Give it a read.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Blake's ears twitched under her bow as they caught the sounds from outside. Over the past few days, the mostly-empty campus of Beacon had started to show signs of increased activity. Certain students started visiting the place with their dragons, preparing to get them settled in their old stalls. The stable hands were working twice as hard to get the elemental barns in order. Blake often volunteered to help, for which they were very grateful.

Of course, most of her time was devoted to caring for Pit, who continued to live up to his name.

She sat on one of four floor pads, which were positioned next to four deep inclines in the wall. Three of these were empty, but had different bags of padding nearby: sand for the future water dragon, downy feathers for the wind dragon, and scraps of special fireproof cloth for the fire dragon. Pit's, which was at the end closest to the door, was lined with fresh hay, which the little dragonet was taking immense joy in throwing around.

"Can't you keep your bed neat for a second?" Blake asked, and was promptly answered with several pieces of hay being tossed at her face. She laughed, a light, happy sound that came easily to her during those precious moments alone with her dragon.

As she took a sliced apple from her feeding bag, she glanced toward the window with a sigh. These past few days had been a true blessing. Free of Adam and his abuse, free of the cries of doomed dragonets, and free to bond with her new partner, Blake couldn't remember a time when she had been happier. Truthfully, she didn't want this to end.

But, it would. The next day, after the hatching, she'd be given three roommates and Pit would have to befriend three new dragons.

She knew that it was inevitable. She had agreed to Ozpin's terms, after all, and becoming a Dragon Rider involved being trained with a team. Still, she couldn't help but wish that she could just remain on an empty campus, just her and a young Pit, forever.

Pit squeaked angrily, and Blake realized that she had been holding the apple slice for almost a minute. She smiled apologetically and tossed it to him. His green muzzle snapped it easily out of the air. His yellow eyes closed contentedly as he chomped on the fruit. As soon as he swallowed, he was barking for more.

"You are a greedy little guy," Blake said, bopping his nose before holding out another apple slice.

As Pit ate, Blake marveled at how much he had grown. Upon hatching, he had been about the size of a large textbook. Now, he was as long as her arm, not including his thick tail, which was almost the same length again.

 _I hope he won't bully the other hatchlings,_ she thought. Ozpin had cautioned her that, since Pit was older, he might try to assert dominance over her teammates' dragonets. She hoped that wouldn't be the case. She didn't need any extra conflict.

Looking at Pit's proud expression and knowing his assertive personality, however, she had a feeling that there would be trouble in the future.

Pit, of course, was merely content to keep asking for more food, chirping loudly as the light reflected off of the silver freckles that dusted his back.

…..

Ruby awoke before the sun even rose the next morning. Sitting up in her sleeping bag, she smiled up at the long, dark expanse of sky above her. The stars were only just starting to fade as the first traces of pinkish-orange appeared on the horizon.

All new students had been taken to the giant stone arena at the edge of campus near the elemental barns, and had been told to set up their sleeping bags. According to Jaune, this had been where he had undergone the sight test and had been accepted into Beacon by four of the professors' dragons.

Thinking back, Ruby wondered if she had undergone a sight test of her own. She remembered Nautilus scrutinizing her closely after the encounter with the egg thieves, and Ragnar had definitely said something to Ozpin before their initial conversation. _I guess it was a mix,_ she thought. _Since I definitely proved I could handle a dragon during that fight. I wonder if anyone else ever was admitted because of both combat and sight._

Nearby, she noticed Yang stirring. She nudged her sister's shoulder, smiling when those lavender eyes opened. "It's today!" she whispered, her voice charged with excitement.

Yang grinned, sitting up immediately. "I am so ready!"

A gust of wind pushed their hair back, and they looked up to see Nautilus's pale eyes looking down at them from a perch between two pillars. The water dragon took a deep breath, and they barely covered their ears before a deep, almost song-like roar echoed throughout the arena.

Around them, people were jolted awake by the sound, some jumping to their feet while still asleep, then blinking in confusion as to why they were standing.

Ruby and Yang were already rolling up their sleeping bags and standing up. A few other people were doing the same, obviously having woken up before Nautilus's call. Heavy footsteps at the arena entrance signaled the approach of several other dragons.

Ozpin was walking in the lead, the ancient-looking Ragnar at his side. Behind him were two more men and two dragons, one wind, one fire. All three dragons were carrying special egg containers strapped to their sides. Ruby watched as they were detached one by one and opened.

Before she could approach, however, Glynda's voice called from the entrance. "Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long, and Weiss Schnee. Please come here."

The three ran over. Glynda beckoned for them to follow.

"Your eggs are in the egg barn near the main campus. They have been placed in individual rooms, so that the bonding process won't be hindered by any distractions. Food bags have been placed in the rooms. You will want to feed your dragons immediately after they hatch." Her words were as brisk as the pace she set as they walked across the grounds. "Miss Schnee, special accommodations have been made for your ice dragon. Since it will need to be cooled down immediately, there is a bucket of ice water, and the food has been chilled."

"Thank you, ma'am," Weiss promptly replied.

"After you have bonded with your dragonets, you will go to your room," Glynda continued. "You have a teammate already waiting for you. She has an earth dragon that hatched a few days ago."

Ruby blinked. "Wait, what?"

"Special circumstances. Don't ask," Glynda said firmly. "If you wish to know your dragon's sex after it hatches, bring it to me. It really doesn't matter, but many people like to know. You don't need to name it right away, but you should probably give it a name within the next week." She stopped outside the egg barn. "Any questions?"

"Uh, where are the rooms?" Ruby asked.

Glynda pushed the doors open. A few older elemental dragons sat on stone pallets, keeping watch over the machinery which, until recently, had been filled completely with eggs. A few non-elemental eggs were being incubated, but the barn was largely empty. Just inside, there was a door leading into a thin hallway, which had a dozen small doorways leading into tiny rooms. Three of them had closed doors. "Miss Schnee, you are in the closest room. Miss Rose, you will be in that one. Miss Xiao Long, your egg is in the furthest room." The tiniest of smiles came to her face. "Good luck."

Weiss took a breath, then walked swiftly to the first room, entering without a word to the other two girls.

Ruby and Yang exchanged an excited glance, then entered their respective rooms.

After closing the door behind her, Ruby turned to see her egg. It was sitting in a small divot in the wall, which had a heated pad beneath it and was lined with soft, dragonet-safe materials. To her left was a bag of what looked like baked apple slices. _Soft, warm, and easy to chew,_ Ruby thought.

The only other thing in the room was a small, padded pallet, which had several towels and a thick blanket hanging from the walls nearby. This was obviously there to place the dragon after hatching, so that the fluids could be cleaned and the hatchling warmed.

Ruby walked over to her egg, feeling her heart thumping against her rib cage. In the days since the injection, the shell had changed from its natural bronze color, and now was almost pure white. The slightest hint of pale gray appeared in tiny swirls across the surface. She placed a hand on the shell, biting her lip as she felt a tap on the other side.

"Hey, Storm," she said. "Are you ready to come out yet?" Another tap answered her.

Of course, the dragon would hatch within the next few minutes. The heating of the egg had been carefully managed, so that the timing would be exact. Still, it felt right to ask.

"I really want to meet you, Storm," Ruby murmured. "Can you come out? Please?"

Tap. Tap tap. Tap-tap-tap-tap- Crack!

Ruby jumped, but didn't pull her hand away, for the tip of a tiny snout was pressed firmly against it. She didn't even notice that her palm had been scratched by the broken eggshells until a little tongue darted out, lapping at the blood. She withdrew her hand, watching with wide eyes as the snout pushed further out, the egg tooth falling off as the rest of the egg shook. A leg pushed out. Then, with a firm shake, the dragonet shed the rest of its prison.

It was perfect. Slender and tiny, with a whip-like tail and fins that, if unfolded, would have been bigger than its tiny head. Like its shell, its scales were white with the faintest swirls of light gray, making it look like a wisp of cloud. Its sky-blue eyes opened, and Ruby fell in love immediately.

"Hey there," Ruby cooed, reaching out her uninjured hand to touch her dragon. "Hey, Storm."

Storm opened its mouth and squeaked, taking a clumsy step forward and pressing its head into Ruby's palm. It nuzzled against the warm skin, a rattling purr rising in its throat.

Quickly, Ruby reached for an apple slice and held it out. It was immediately snapped up by Storm's tiny jaws. As it chewed, it started shivering a little.

 _Gotta dry it off now._ Ruby carefully reached in, not caring when the egg goo got on her arms, and picked up little Storm, who squawked once, but didn't protest otherwise. The squawk quickly turned to another purr as Ruby started rubbing it down with the towels.

Storm actually leaned into the towels, acting like a dog getting dried after a bath. All the while, it was never quiet. Squeaks, chirps, and purrs escaped its snout at intervals as it gazed adoringly up at its partner.

Ruby only realized she was crying when Storm extended its neck and licked her cheek with a long, pink tongue. She smiled, scratching the tiny creature under the chin. "I'm okay. I'm just so happy, Storm. We're going to be best friends. You'll see."

Storm's wide, trusting gaze was all the answer she needed. Then, those perfect blue eyes fell on the apple bag and it let out a high-pitched, demanding chirp.

….

Weiss sat on the small pallet, staring at the white and pale blue egg with a mixture of anticipation and fear. She thought back to that last night before she left, and the coldness of Glacier's breath on her face. _Is it really in an ice dragon's nature to be so vicious?_ she wondered. _Will mine be like that from the beginning? Will the bonding process even be the same?_

 _Perhaps, I should have gotten a regular water dragon._ She shook her head, pushing away the thought as soon as it arose. _No. You are a Schnee. You can handle this. You must handle this._

Still, she flinched when the egg cracked for the first time. Mentally berating herself, she stood and walked over, staring at the rupture that had appeared on the smooth surface.

Crack. Another line ran across the shell. Still, nothing came through. Weiss started to reach for the egg, then stopped herself. Her father had always told her that a dragonet had to hatch on its own. If it couldn't hatch, it wasn't strong enough to live.

This caused a new fear to arise: Would her dragon be the one fluke from her father's broodery? Would it die in the shell, unable to get out?

Then, another firm tap sounded, and the egg shards fell aside, almost neatly. Sitting in the middle of it, shaking its head to dislodge a glob of egg goo, was her dragon.

At first glance, it looked like a miniature version of Glacier. However, as Weiss looked closer, she saw several differences. Where Glacier's scales were an oppressive white color, this dragonet's scales were more of a very faint blue shade, like a winter sky reflecting off of a sheet of ice. Several darker bumps rose on its back and down its tail; the beginning of its sharp spines. Its eyes were as black as frostbite, hiding the pupils entirely and giving its otherwise-beautiful face a slightly unsettling look. Its wings and frills were almost transparent, only turning a shade of pinkish-blue when the light of the incubator shined on them in a certain way.

Looking at the incubator, Weiss remembered that she had to cool her partner off quickly. Pushing aside her nervousness, she picked up the dragonet, which curled up against her chest without protest. She placed it on the pallet and knelt in front of it, wetting a cloth in the ice bucket, and began wiping down the pale blue scales.

The dragonet closed its eyes as some water dribbled across its face, but it was making a breathy whistling noise, which Weiss knew was an ice dragon's way of voicing approval. Relief flooded her, and she allowed herself a moment to appreciate the fact that this was _her_ dragon. The events in Glacier's barn had almost made her forget that.

Then, those unsettling eyes blinked up at her, and the dragonet snapped firmly at the air. Weiss jumped, then realized that her hatchling was staring at the nearby bag of cold apple slices. She smiled shakily. "Of course. My apologies."

She took a slice and held it out in her palm, holding her breath as the dragonet eyed it. She let the breath out when the dragonet, rather than biting her or snapping up the apple, took the slice from her palm delicately. She had another one ready by the time it swallowed. It took it with the same carefulness, and chewed in a way that was almost polite.

Weiss handed it another slice, then set about drying off its scales while it ate. When she finished, she saw that her dragon was looking up at her, head tilted inquisitively to the side. Her heart warmed and she smiled down at it.

"You don't seem so vicious, do you?" she murmured.

The dragonet blinked its black eyes up at her.

Weiss sat down on the pallet, gently drawing her partner into her lap, watching the tiny creature curl up like a cat. She started stroking its back slowly. "I still need to be careful," she muttered aloud. "But I think we'll be okay." She looked down at the hatchling. "What do you think?"

The ice dragon didn't reply. It just nuzzled against her palm, letting out another happy, slightly eerie-sounding whistle.

…

Yang barely closed the door before a loud, insistent crack caused her to hurry over to her egg. Another crack preluded the egg breaking almost completely in half. The shell halves were shoved to the side by large, impatient wings. The dragonet shook its head, dislodging the egg tooth and throwing it across the room.

It was gorgeous! Like its shell, it was almost pure red with streaks of shimmering gold going down its back. Its eyes were like green flames as they blinked up at Yang. The beginning of its horns were obvious by the brown nubs at the top of its head near its flicking ears.

Yang smiled. "Little firecracker, aren't ya?" She reached for her dragon, only to yelp when it lunged forward, sinking its tiny, sharp teeth into her hand. She let out a long hiss through her teeth. Though new hatchlings had small fangs, they were still sharp enough to pierce skin.

"Okay. You're hungry. I gotcha," she gritted, reaching for the bag of apples with her free hand and grabbing one.

Smelling food, the dragonet released Yang's hand and turned in the direction of the bag. It opened its mouth, and Yang found herself tossing the apple slice rather than handing it over. The way the hatchling snatched it out of the air told her that had been a smart move.

After a few more slices, Yang knew it was time to pick up her new dragon and transfer him over to the pallet. A few minutes ago, she would have gladly done so. Now, looking at those sharp teeth and claws, she wasn't so sure. She reached for the hatchling, which responded with a growl.

She frowned. Elemental hatchlings weren't supposed to be this hostile, were they? She reached out again and received another hard bite for her trouble.

She could feel a red hue coming to her eyes. "Okay, you little shrimp," she muttered. "You'd better pipe down before I dump a bucket of water on you. Do you want to spend the rest of your life covered in goo, huh?"

The dragonet blinked at her change in tone, then opened its mouth, letting go of her hand sullenly. It glared at her as she picked it up and moved it to the pallet, but didn't thrash around anymore. It waited passively for her to wipe it down, then curled up with a huff, closing its eyes.

Yang knelt next to the pallet, her heart sinking as she looked down at the tiny creature before her. Was this how things were supposed to start? Was this the magical moment she was supposed to remember forever?

She quickly shook herself. _Chill, Yang. Mrs. Violet said that fire dragons are a bit harder to train. You never had Mom around to tell you how a fire hatching is. This is probably normal. This little guy'll love you by the end of the week._

Encouraged by this thought, she placed a hand on her dragon's back, trying not to let it bother her when it responded with an annoyed hiss.

 **The hatching chapters have definitely been fun to type. You'll find out the names of the hatchlings in chapter 11. Also, if it helps, I'll post a little thing in the Author Notes showing the names, descriptions, and partners of all the dragons so far.**

 **If you like what you see, and would like to be five chapters ahead in this story, please consider pledging to my P/atreon, which is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	9. The Hatching (Team JNPR)

**This is one of my favorite chapters. Just putting that out there. I've been** _ **really**_ **looking forward to posting this one!**

 **In honor of this special chapter, I'd like to recommend my absolute favorite dragon-related series of all time. If you read nothing else dragon-related, read this one: Anne McCaffrey's "Dragonriders of Pern" series. It's a fantasy/sci-fi series taking place on a planet called Pern. Every two hundred years, a planet known as the Red Star passes over Pern, causing a parasitic spore called Thread to drop and devour all organic matter wherever it touches. Genetically-modified dragons who share a telepathic bond with their riders are used to fight the Thread whenever it falls.**

 **I admittedly drew a bit from Pern in certain scenes, such as this and the next hatching chapter, where the Riders line up and wait to be approached by their dragons, though there isn't a telepathic connection here. Jaune's hatching in particular pays homage to a scene from the second book, "Dragonquest."**

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!**

Ren was awoken by Nora poking his cheek repeatedly. He groaned, swatting her hand away.

"Ren, wake up!" Nora chirped. "We're getting our dragons today! Our _dragons_!" She bounced up and down, squealing.

Ren sat up just in time to see Nautilus flying overhead and landing on a nearby perch. He covered his ears as the loud, deep cry echoed across the arena, jolting the other students awake. He started rolling up his sleeping bag as three more dragons entered the arena, bearing several egg carriers. Despite his tiredness, he felt a definite stir of excitement in his stomach.

Nora pointed toward the entrance. "Look! Ruby, Yang, and Weiss are leaving. They must be going to their eggs." She squeaked excitedly. "That must mean we're gonna get ours right now!"

"Not quite." One of the professors, a tall man with wild green hair and thick glasses, stood nearby. "You have about an hour to freshen up. Since the eggs had to be brought outside, and since they're all meant to hatch at the same time, more care had to be taken, so they won't hatch just yet. The bathrooms and showers are that way." He pointed toward another exit nearby.

"Aw…" Nora's shoulders slumped, but she perked up again almost immediately. "Well, I guess we'd better make sure we look our best for our dragons! No morning breath for my partner. Come on, Ren." Grabbing Ren's arm, she dragged him off.

They met up with Jaune and Pyrrha as they approached the bathrooms with their clothes. Jaune was clad in a fleece onesie, and didn't even blink as the group of snickering boys from before walked by and pointed at him.

"They're just jealous because they probably froze their butts off last night," Jaune declared.

Once everyone was clean and dressed, they gathered around the eggs, which had been lined up in seemingly no particular order on their incubators. People were whispering and pointing, trying to figure out which egg would hatch the dragonet that would be theirs. Nautilus and the other three dragons, which Jaune recognized from his sight test, sat in a semi-circle behind the eggs. Sacks of food, clean towels, and buckets of warm water sat nearby.

When everyone was gathered, Ozpin came forward, nodding at his gray earth dragon before smiling at the students. "Students of Beacon, future Dragon Riders, this is the moment you have all been looking forward to, I'm sure: The bonding to your dragon." He walked calmly along the line of students, sipping from a mug of coffee. "This is a moment that so many people dream of. Yet, so few truly understand what it means. This isn't a magical moment in a fairy tale. This isn't the end of any troubles you had before now. In fact, it's the beginning of many more."

Some students frowned in confusion. Most kept their gazes fixed on the eggs.

"There are two moments every Rider looks forward to," Ozpin continued. "The hatching, and that moment when you fly into battle astride your mighty partner. Few stop to consider the in-between time, which is going to be your lives for the next year. A living, helpless being is going to emerge from each of these eggs. Each and every one of you are going to be responsible for another life. You will raise your dragon. You will feed it. You will clean up after it. You will spend sleepless nights calming it down if it's afraid of the dark. You will tear your hair out wondering why it isn't responding to your commands." He smiled. "We will offer guidance and all the assistance we can, but the fate of your dragon is ultimately in your hands. Do not forget that. This is not a glorified pet. This is your partner for life. Remember that. Remember that every day after today."

By this point, everyone was listening. Eager expressions took on a solemn undertone as the young students took in Ozpin's words. Some started to look nervous. Most, however, remained just as excited as before. They were ready. They could handle what came next. They could handle anything as long as they had their dragons.

Ozpin stepped back and walked over to his dragon, leaning against the gray flank. Another professor, a portly man with a mustache, walked away from his fire dragon and stood in front of the crowd.

"Behind me are enough elemental eggs for all of you," he began. "But, these eggs weren't haphazardly chosen. Four eggs have been taken from each of the planned clutches. Four eggs, four elements, four teammates. After your dragon chooses you, it will smell its three siblings and instinctively seek them out. The partners of those three siblings will be your teammates during the rest of your time at Beacon." He nodded encouragingly. "And don't let Ozpin get you down. This is a moment to remember. Good luck."

He walked away, calling over his shoulder: "Oh, it doesn't matter where you stand. I've seen dragons from the far end of a line choose a person on the complete other side before. So, no pushing. Just let the hatchlings decide."

There was still some shoving as the students quickly moved to stand in a line. Jaune found himself sandwiched between Sun and the red-haired boy with the tattoos around his eyes. He stared at the multicolored eggs, his heart hammering against his ribcage.

Nora stood next to Ren, gripping his hand as she stared fixedly at the eggs. "Ren, this is happening," she breathed. Next to her, Ren nodded and squeezed her hand.

Pyrrha stood at the end of the line, glancing at her fellow students, then at the eggs.

A few minutes of silence passed. The sun started to creep over the horizon. The first crack split the early morning air.

There was a collective intake of breath as everyone tried to see which egg it had been. Then, there was another. And another. Soon, the air was rending with the sound of shattering shells and the first cries of the squealing dragonets. Some people got on their knees and held out their hands, making clicking sounds or calling.

Pyrrha knelt down, but she didn't make any noise. She just looked at the eggs and the emerging dragons, stunned by the clumsy beauty of the tiny creatures as they moved forward, calling out for the partners they had been genetically conditioned to seek out. She watched, trying to see if any of those jewel-like eyes were turned in her direction.

Next to her, a brown earth dragon stumbled into the arms of a girl, who promptly burst into tears as she hugged the hatchling. "Congratulations," Pyrrha said as the girl hurried away to get a towel and some apple slices.

She turned back toward the hatchlings and immediately found her gaze fixed on a set of eyes several feet away. They were pale blue, almost white, and practically glowing in the gray light of the morning. The dragonet that held these eyes was a bright, golden-orange color. It blinked once, then hurried toward her.

Pyrrha held her breath, a lump rising in her throat. She didn't dare to blink, didn't dare risk breaking the link that was forming between her eyes and that of the dragonet. She watched as it tripped over the tail of one of its fellows, hissed irritably, then continued forward. As it drew close, she held out her arms, letting out her breath in a gasp as she felt the warm, wet form leap into her embrace, tiny claws digging into her shirt.

She held the dragonet against her chest as she stood up, walking toward the towels. The creature's hot breaths on her neck were the most wonderful sensation she had ever felt.

As she rubbed her new partner down and fed it some apple slices, she took a moment to examine it. It was a fire dragon, with eyes like blue flames and scales that were pure gold-orange, without a single other marking on them. The beginning of two dark horns were on its head, and its ears flicked curiously when Pyrrha cooed at it.

"You are just grand," she murmured, stroking the creature's warm brow. "Simply grand. We will do so well together. I can feel it."

The dragonet nipped her finger, growling quietly.

Pyrrha withdrew her hand, trying not to feel too hurt. _Fire dragons are a bit more vicious than the others. It's nothing personal,_ she reminded herself. _It still chose you._ She tried rubbing the hatchling's back. It blinked up at her, and didn't try biting again.

Nora, meanwhile, had let go of Ren and was kneeling on the ground, calling out to each dragon that came near. "Here, here! I'm right here! I'll take good care of you! Me, me, me!"

Ren was a bit calmer, remaining standing and waiting patiently for one of the hatchlings to look at him. Still, even though his excitement wasn't as obvious, he felt his heart leap hopefully every time a dragon passed him.

One of the nearby eggs started to shake, and Nora turned toward it. She felt all of her senses honing in on it as it continued to move. _This is the one,_ she thought. _This has gotta be the one._ In that moment, she knew that she had never felt so sure of anything before.

A crack appeared, and a tiny snout peeked out. The dragonet shook the shell away and extended a set of large wings. Pale green eyes blinked open, a pair of head fins twitched, and the dragon turned to look at Nora.

Nora's breath caught in her throat. "Hey," she whispered, finding herself unable to say much else all of a sudden. She waited, blinking rapidly as tears started to gather in the corners of her eyes. _Please, please, please…_ Then, the dragonet took a step forward.

It walked slowly, but deliberately toward Nora, stopping just in front of her. The hatchling stared up at her, blinked, and then bobbed its head. If that wasn't a sign of approval, nothing was!

"EEEK!" Nora squeaked, making the hatchling jump. "Oops, sorry." She picked up the dragonet. "Come on, let's get you dried off." She grinned at Ren. "Look, Ren! It's a wind dragon!"

"Go take care of it, Nora," Ren replied, not taking his eyes off of the eggs.

"Right, right." Nora ran over to the towels and picked one up. "Come on, gorgeous." As she started rubbing down her new dragon, she appreciated the fact that this probably was the most beautiful creature she had ever seen. Its scales were like a pastel-lover's heaven with patches and swirls of pale yellow, baby blue, and rosy pink covering it. "You are the prettiest dragonet in the world!" she declared, bending down to kiss the creature's snout.

The dragonet snapped at her nose, opening its mouth wide.

"Oh, right. You're hungry." Nora grabbed a handful of apple slices from a nearby bag and held her hand out. "Here you go. Eat up. You gotta grow big and strong." She giggled as the dragonet's snout tickled her palm. "Omigosh, I love you so much!"

Ren allowed himself a smile as he heard Nora rushing off to take care of her dragon, then turned his attention back to the eggs. There were several unclaimed hatchlings, but he still felt the beginning traces of worry that the others were probably starting to feel. _Will I not get chosen?_ he wondered, even though he knew it was silly. Of course he'd be chosen. Everyone would get chosen.

To his right, a dragon jumped from an incubator and started running, only to trip and fall head over heels. He turned to look as the hatchling shook its head, flashing a very human expression of aggravation. Then, it turned toward Ren.

The first thing Ren noticed was that the dragon was odd-eyed. Its right eye was a dark gray color while the other was a deep teal. The next thing he realized was that those eyes were _looking right at him!_

The dragonet tilted its head, blinked, then opened its mouth to let out a loud, excited squawk. It then promptly started to bound toward Ren, jaws open like an eager puppy.

Ren knelt on the ground, unable to keep from laughing as the half-crazed dragon barreled toward him. It was a water dragonet, and kept tripping over its webbed feet and pounding the ground with its large, flat tail. He held out his arms, catching the hatchling as it tripped into him. He let out an "Oof!" as the dragonet inadvertently headbutted his chest.

"Okay," he muttered, groaning as he stood up. The dragon wiggled against him, rubbing its head against his collarbone. "Easy, now. Try to calm down. I don't want to drop you."

The dragonet twitched and squeaked, as if the mere sound of Ren's voice was enough to send it into a frenzy. He walked by Nora, and stopped as his new charge extended its neck and started to bark.

Nora's dragon looked up from underneath a towel and responded with a squeak of its own.

Ren grinned as Nora looked at him. "Looks like we're going to be teammates." He walked over and set his dragon down next to Nora's, smiling as they started eagerly sniffing and nuzzling each other.

Nora squealed, bouncing up and down. "Omigosh! Ren! Ren, this is the best day of my life! Oooh, your dragon has such pretty eyes!"

Ren tried to hold his new hatchling still as he dried it off. Its scales were dark blue with freckles of sea-green all over and streaks of the same color on its wings. He looked at Nora's dragon, nodding appreciatively. "Yours is quite pretty too."

Nora giggled. "I guess good looks run in the family, huh?" She looked around, trying to see if any earth or fire dragons were leading their partners over.

Then, they heard a warble and turned to see Pyrrha approaching. In her arms was an excited fire dragon, whose neck was stretched at its full length as it tried to reach its two siblings.

Pyrrha smiled, placing her dragon down so that it could get acquainted with the other two. "It looks like we only have the earth dragon left," she remarked.

Nora nodded, looking toward the dwindling line of students. "We'll know any second now!"

Jaune, meanwhile, was trying desperately to suppress the meltdown that was building up threateningly in his brain. _Everyone gets chosen. Everyone gets chosen. You're getting a dragon. You passed the sight test. The profs' dragons like you. You're gonna get one._

He watched as egg after egg hatched. Dragonets ran to their partners. Some even brushed against his leg in their hurry to get to their chosen human or Faunus. Minutes passed. He knelt on the ground, trying to catch the eye of each dragon. None of them even looked in his direction.

Finally, he was sitting alone in the middle of the arena. He stared at the incubators, his eyes resting on the last egg. _Okay,_ he thought. _It's gonna be you, then. Come on out._

He stared at the egg, waiting to hear a crack, waiting to see a shake. Nothing happened.

Behind him, he could hear students fawning over their dragons, talking to their new teammates, and squealing with excitement. He heard squawks, chirps, warbles, hisses, and practically every other animal sound imaginable. Still, he continued to stare at the egg.

It was pale green with streaks of light brown. An earth dragon egg. His dragon egg.

More minutes passed. His heart started to sink. His eyes started to sting. "Come on…" he whispered. He glanced up, and saw the professors exchanging worried looks. His throat tightened.

A hand touched his shoulder, and he looked up to see Pyrrha staring down at him. Her face was sympathetic. Cradled in one arm was a fire dragon, who was gazing intently at the motionless egg.

"I'm sorry, Jaune," Pyrrha murmured. "It happens sometimes. Don't worry, though. Ozpin will inject another egg for you. You'll be on our team."

Jaune shook his head numbly. "It can't be dead…" He turned to look back at the egg. His stomach churned. "It's mine."

"You'll get your egg," Pyrrha repeated. "You have to. You'll just need to wait a bit longer." She knelt next to him, rubbing his shoulder. "Don't worry. You can play with our dragons until yours hatches."

Jaune opened his mouth to reply, then froze as the tiniest sound reached his ear. It was a tap. Not a crack, or a scratch, or anything loud or particularly noticeable. If his ears hadn't already been trained on the egg, he would have missed it.

He turned toward the egg. Another tap just barely reached his eardrums. "It's alive," he breathed. "It's moving."

Pyrrha watched Jaune, pity causing her heart to ache. _It doesn't matter,_ she thought as she watched the egg. _It's too weak. They'll take it to be culled._ She could see Ozpin starting to walk over, a grave look on his face. "I'm sorry, Jaune," she sighed.

Jaune stared at the egg. It shook. It was the slightest vibration of a movement, but it still shook! Then, he saw Ozpin approaching. "No!" He stood up and ran over, kneeling in front of the egg. "Come on, little guy. You want to live, don't you? I'm here! Come out. You can do it!"

He could hear movement within the egg. In response to his voice, the tapping increased. In the light of the incubator, he could just barely see through the shell. For an instant, he saw the outline of a tiny head desperately bumping against the inside of the shell. _It doesn't have an egg tooth,_ he realized, looking around for a rock.

Finding nothing, he settled for pulling his Scroll out of his pocket and sharply tapping the shell with the corner. A crack appeared. Inside the egg, the hatchling's movements redoubled. "That's it!" Jaune said eagerly, hitting the egg again. This time, a large crack went all the way down. Tiny claws slipped through the gap as the dragonet tried to pry the egg apart, struggling and thrashing.

Jaune slid his fingers into the crack and pulled. A flood of egg juices came out, soaking his pants and hoodie. He didn't care, though. Sitting in the middle of it, trembling, eyes tightly shut, was his dragonet.

It was tiny, half the size of its peers, resembling a lizard more than a dragon. Jaune was easily able to lift it with one hand. It whimpered and crawled blindly toward Jaune's chest, rubbing its head against his hoodie and trying to soak up what warmth it could get.

"Mister Arc." Ozpin's voice caused Jaune to look up. The Dragonmaster was looking down at him, an expression of sadness and regret on his face. "I am so sorry."

Jaune stood up, holding the tiny dragon against his chest. His heart sank as he looked at Ozpin's downcast eyes. "Why? Is it still going to die?" He drew the little dragon closer, looking at its shaking form.

"Most likely," Ozpin sighed. "This is not supposed to happen, you see. It can, but we try very hard to prevent it." He handed Jaune a towel. "Here. You'd might as well make her comfortable. Come talk to me when…when it's over. You will get an egg after this. I promise."

 _Her._ Jaune took the towel and walked toward where the apples were. He was aware of Pyrrha falling into step beside him, but his eyes were only for the dragon that was curled weakly against his chest. He sat down, rubbing her gently with the towel. The movement caused her to stir slightly. Her eyelids twitched.

Jaune reached for an unused bucket of warm water and took a rag, carefully running it over the dragonet's face. "Hey," he whispered, his voice hoarse. "Hey, little girl. Come on. Open your eyes."

The dragon shook her head once, groaning. Her snout twitched when Jaune held an apple slice near it. She weakly licked it.

Tears started streaming down Jaune's cheeks as he looked down at the tiny dragon. "Come on, girl," he breathed. "You made it out of the egg, didn't you? You can make it now." He didn't care that this dragon was weak, or that it was a runt. He didn't care that he'd get a stronger one if this one died. _This_ was his dragon. She needed him. He wanted her to live!

Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora stood nearby, their faces solemn. Their dragons were straining against their arms, trying to reach their motionless sibling. Ren's water dragon let out a loud howl.

In Jaune's arms, the little earth dragon twitched. He blinked. "Guys, bring your dragons over."

The others knelt down next to Jaune, allowing their dragonets to see their sibling. The three hatchlings leaned in immediately, licking and whimpering and barking and squeaking. The scene would have been utterly heartbreaking, if it weren't for the fact that the earth dragonet was starting to stir just a bit more.

"Come on," Jaune urged. "You can do it. I'll take care of you, girl. You just gotta live, okay?" He bit a piece of apple from the slice and held it under her nose. "Here. Eat up."

Slowly, a tongue came out, wrapped around the piece of apple, and drew it into the tiny muzzle. She chewed, then swallowed.

Then, her eyes opened.

They were silver, like the eyes of a wild hatchling. They glistened as the shivering runt squinted against the rising sun. Her pale green and brown scales shined as she slowly, shakily sat up. She blinked up at Jaune, tilting her head.

Jaune let out a sob and hugged the dragon close. "Good girl. I knew you could do it," he whispered. "My name's Jaune. We're gonna be partners, okay?"

The dragon wriggled against his chest and let out a quiet squeak.

Pyrrha wiped her eyes, smiling with relief as her dragon squawked its approval.

Behind them, Ozpin cleared his throat. When Jaune stood up, the Dragonmaster was regarding him with an unreadable expression. "You might have saved her, but she is still a runt," Ozpin said bluntly. "Raising her will be doubly difficult, as will making her capable of fighting Grimm."

He looked down at the dragon. "You can still ask for a replacement egg." These words came out forced, as if he really didn't want to say them, but was obliged to.

Jaune, however, shook his head. "And let her be culled? No way! She wants to live." He looked at the dragon, who blinked up at him and chirped. "Besides, we already chose each other. She's mine!"

When he looked back at Ozpin, the Dragonmaster was nodding. His expression had softened into a smile. "Very well, then. Good luck."

Nora walked over, holding her wind dragon in her arms. "Um, sir? Could you tell me if my dragon's a boy or a girl? I'm trying to figure out what to name it."

Ozpin nodded. "Of course." He examined the dragon for a moment. "Yours is a girl." He turned toward Ren and Pyrrha. "Yours are both males."

He looked at each of the four and their dragons, his gaze finally falling on Jaune and the runt once again. "You will have hard times ahead," he said to Jaune. "But, I now see why Ragnar, Nautilus, Gust, and Pepper approved so strongly of you. I have a good feeling about you and the rest of your team." He smiled at them before walking off to speak to the other assembled teams.

Jaune felt his new dragonet shivering, and held her closer, cooing gently. "We're going to be the best, girl. Just you wait. In a few years, the Grimm will be the ones trembling."

Nora talked excitedly about potential names while Ren listened patiently, trying to keep his water dragon from leaping out of his arms.

Pyrrha, on the other hand, was silent. She kept her own dragon close, stroking his back and smiling at him while watching Jaune with one eye. Her heart warmed as she watched the runty earth dragon chirp quietly in his ear. She knew Ozpin was right: The next few years would be difficult. The runt would require extra care, and the team would have more hurdles to go over. However, she was more than willing to make the extra effort, and knew that Ren and Nora would be as well.

Ozpin was also right about there being something special about Jaune. Looking at that gentle smile and the protective way he was hugging his stunted dragon, Pyrrha felt truly glad that she would be sharing her time at Beacon with this accepting, kindhearted young man. She fed her dragon another apple slice and glanced toward the rising sun.

 _This is only the beginning,_ she thought. _Things will only get better from here._

 **And that's Team JNPR assembled! Next week, we'll see how the hatching went for Team SSSN. After that, we get baby dragon bonding time! Yay!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards (including being further ahead in this fic), please consider pledging to my P/atreon, which is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	10. The Hatching (Team SSSN)

**Greetings, my lovelies! It's Dragon Tuesday yet again! Both Werewolf Friday and Dragon Tuesday are provided to you by me, the wonderful Solora Goldsun. This is the last of the hatching chapters. After that, we'll get the names of the dragons and see some interaction, both with the dragons and with the other characters.**

 **I'm going classic with this week's dragon recommendation: "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien. If you haven't read it, do it immediately! It's basically required reading for anyone who likes books. Unlike the longer, denser "Lord of the Rings" books, this one has a much quicker pace and a simple, concise story with an awesome dragon. I…would not recommend the Peter Jackson trilogy. It adds a bunch of stuff that isn't in the book *cough* Tauriel *cough* and completely changes or eliminates certain other scenes. If you want to see a movie adaptation, check out the Rankin Bass animated version.**

 **In the meantime, enjoy!**

Neptune was abruptly awoken by the bugling cry of Nautilus. He sat up with a mumbled exclamation of surprise. Next to him, Sun groaned.

 _Thank goodness he just shouted, and didn't douse us with water,_ Neptune thought, looking at the water dragon with an inward shudder. He wasn't necessarily terrified of water dragons themselves, but water dragons usually meant being soaked. They meant having to train in things like swimming, riding underwater, and manipulating rain. These were all things Neptune desperately wanted to avoid.

Sun grinned and punched Neptune's arm as he started rolling up his sleeping bag. "This is it, man! You ready?"

Neptune grinned. "Totally." His heart leaped as he watched the professors' dragons bring the eggs in. As everyone headed toward the bathrooms, he kept glancing over his shoulder to look at them as they were being carefully taken out and put on a line of incubators. The two were joined by their friends Scarlet and Sage. Scarlet was practically bouncing as he walked.

"I've been looking forward to this for years!" Scarlet said excitedly. "This is going to be so amazing!"

Sage smiled easily. "Everyone says that this is the moment we'll always remember."

"Yeah, I'm just tired of waiting." Sun looked toward the line of eggs. "Let's hurry. I wanna get a good spot."

They returned to the arena, marveling at the sheer number and variety of eggs that were sitting there, just waiting to hatch. Blue, green, gray, and turquoise water eggs. Red, gold, orange, and yellow fire eggs. Wind eggs with pale yellows, whites, and greens. Earth eggs that looked like stone, wood, or the deepest depths of soil.

It was impossible to tell which dragon would go to each person, but people tried to guess. Sun stared at a shiny gold egg nearby and grinned. Neptune found his eye drawn toward a light green wind egg. Scarlet couldn't decide whether the bright red one to his left or the dark blue one to his right was more appealing. Sage looked at the earth eggs with interest, wondering which tiny creature would stumble across the arena in his direction.

When Ozpin started to lecture the students, most didn't listen at first. However, his sharp voice eventually drew everyone in. Even Sun felt his large grin fading a little as he was reminded that the dragon that would bond to him wasn't just something awesome to show off. It would be his responsibility. It would depend on him in order to live and grow and learn how to fight.

 _I guess, at the beginning, it's more like being a parent than a partner,_ he mused. It didn't ruin his excitement in the slightest, however. He was ready.

In the moments between the initial lineup and the first crack of a shell, the silence was as thick as fog. Then, the tension only rose as the sounds of cracks and shatters and squeaks filled the air like a cacophonous wave.

Sun saw the gold egg shake and knelt down, gazing intently at it. It shook once more, then shattered as a perfect, gorgeous golden fire dragon with gleaming blue eyes emerged. It took a step forward, then immediately veered to the far end of the line, chirping loudly.

 _Eh._ Sun shrugged. The odds of actually guessing one's egg were pretty low. It didn't matter. He just wanted a dragon. Despite his preference for a wind or fire dragon, he'd honestly be fine with anything. _I mean, who gets picky when it comes to having your own freaking dragon?_

He had been looking to his left, so didn't notice the creature approaching him from the right until a set of fangs chomped down on his hand. He jumped, his tail going rigid for a brief moment, then looked down.

It was a fire dragon, slightly smaller than the gold one, but with very muscular legs. Its eyes were a smoky gray color. Instead of the more common, bright colors one would expect, this one was mostly black with lines of red, orange, and yellow creeping along the surface like lava-filled cracks. It gave Sun's wrist a shake, hissing softly.

Sun touched the dragon's brow with his free hand, ignoring the sting of its tiny fangs. When the hatchling didn't move away, he scooped the little creature up and brought it to his chest. "Hey, buddy! Are you hungry?" he asked as he walked toward the food bags.

The dragonet let go of his hand, leaving a series of bleeding dots on his skin, and growled.

"I'll take that as a yes!" Sun laughed, not even bothered by the pain as he grabbed a handful of apple slices and put them down for his new charge to eat. While the dragonet was distracted, he started toweling down the wet scales.

"Look at you," he muttered as the hatchling scarfed down the apples and glared at anything that came near. "You're already a little badass." When the dragonet finished the apples and started barking again, his grin widened. "Okay, okay. I'm on it."

Scarlet noticed Sun leaving with his dragon and felt his heart thump wildly. _This is really happening! We're actually getting our dragons! Focus, Scarlet. Focus._ He quickly turned back toward the eggs, eagerly scanning the sea of adorable hatchlings for the one pair of eyes that would be looking right at him.

He saw a dark blue water dragon tearing across the arena toward a boy further down the line. Its large, flat tail knocked a shaking egg from its incubator, causing it to shatter as it hit the hard ground. The dragon inside struggled to its feet, a piece of shell still covering its face as it tried to find its way in the sea of squeaks, chirps, and voices.

Scarlet couldn't help but laugh at the little creature's persistent struggle. _Spunky little guy,_ he thought. Then, he froze as he realized that the hatchling had turned abruptly in his direction when he had laughed. His throat went dry.

"Hey!" he called. "Over here."

Immediately, the dragon ran blindly toward him, trying to dislodge the shell from its face as it moved. Scarlet's reached out and caught the stumbling dragonet, pulling the shell from its face.

It was a pale blue wind dragon with tiny patches of white that looked like clouds. When Scarlet wiped the egg goo from its face, it stared up at him with a pair of pale lavender eyes. It blinked a few times, then squeaked happily.

Scarlet giggled, a little breathlessly. "You're a funny little fella." He stood up and ran toward the drying area. The scent of apples caused his new charge to twitch and bark with excitement. He knelt down and handed the creature a few slices. "There you go." He eyed the dragonet as it ate, frowning a little with concern. "Huh. You're a bit cross-eyed, aren't you."

The hatchling tilted its head, its lavender gaze unfocused. Then, it shook itself and started chirping, craning its head toward another dragon in the distance.

Scarlet followed its gaze and his grin widened. "Sun!" he called. "Bring that little firecracker over here. I think my little guy wants to meet it."

Sure enough, when Sun walked over, his foul-tempered fire dragon allowed the googly-eyed wind dragon to lick its face, though it flashed a very human-like grimace. Sun and Scarlet grinned at each other.

"Yours looks a bit goofy," Sun noted. "Think it'll be able to fly straight?"

"Well, at least mine doesn't look like its mentally cussing out everything it sees," Scarlet protested. "Did you see Neptune or Sage yet?"

"Not yet," Sun said, turning back toward the line. "It shouldn't be too long now."

Sage, meanwhile, was kneeling on the ground, carefully scanning each dragon that came near him. The line was starting to dwindle, but he wasn't worried. There was a dragon for each person, after all. There was nothing to fear.

Then, a loud, terrified squawk caused him to turn his head. One of the fire dragons had turned on a smaller earth dragon and was hissing menacingly. The earth dragon was cringing and backing away, its tail causing it to trip repeatedly. Thankfully, the fire dragon seemed to spot its partner, because it turned abruptly away and ran off.

The earth hatchling, on the other hand, remained frozen in place, shivering as it let out a series of distressed squeaks. Sage watched it, then made a clicking noise to try and rouse it.

It jumped, spinning around, eyes darting back and forth frantically before resting on Sage. It blinked, tilted its head, then started to hesitantly make its way over.

Sage smiled, holding out his arms and continuing to click encouragingly. Another dragon ran by, causing the earth dragonet to yelp and run the final distance between it and Sage, jumping into his arms and hiding its face against his shoulder.

"Hello, there," Sage murmured as he stood up. "You're certainly skittish. Don't worry. We can work on that." He rubbed the dragonet's back slowly as he walked over to an unoccupied drying pad. He had to pry the hatchling's claws from his shirt in order to put it down. "There, now. It's okay."

As he started drying his dragon and feeding it, he looked at its decidedly-pretty coloring. It was a dark, earthy green color with stripes of yellow-green covering it in a tiger-like pattern. Its eyes were dark amber, and blinking rapidly as the creature cringed away from everything it saw.

He saw Scarlet and Sun approaching with their dragons, and felt himself smiling when he noticed his skittish dragonet sniffing the air eagerly. "Looks like there are two dragons here you aren't scared of." His suspicions were confirmed when Scarlet's dragon jumped from his arms and started licking the earth dragonet's striped neck.

"Hey, teammate!" Sun said with a grin. "Want to go watch Nep? I think he's still over there."

Neptune was still in line, and was barely resisting the urge to just grab the next dragon that came near him. _That's not how it works, man. Just let it come to you. You'll be fine. You'll be fine._

Right in front of him, a water egg started shaking. He didn't pay it any mind. That dragonet wouldn't be his. His would be anything _but_ a water dragon.

He noticed a gray-blue wind dragon looking around, and tried clicking at it. It looked at him, then turned away again, causing his heart to sink with disappointment. To his left, a fire dragon was stumbling around. It didn't even turn toward him, though.

The water egg hatched, and a very pretty hatchling emerged. It was pale blue with silvery patches like wet pebbles decorating its scales. It shook itself primly, then opened a pair of dark blue eyes, fixing them immediately on the human in front of it.

Neptune's stomach dropped, and he averted his gaze immediately. _No, no, no. Not me. Choose someone else. Go for the nervous-looking blond guy down the line. He'll like you just fine._

Tiny, webbed feet walked resolutely across the arena. A flat tail thumped the ground. Then, a cold nose touched Neptune's hand, causing him to flinch.

"Shoo," he muttered.

The dragonet squeaked.

"Seriously, go. This won't go well for either of us. Trust me."

The dragonet started to whine.

"Dude, what's wrong with you?" Sun called over from where he and the others were watching. "Pick up your dragon!"

Neptune groaned, reluctantly turning to look down at the water dragonet, who was staring at him with wide, sappy, adoring eyes. His shoulders slumped in defeat. "Last chance to walk away," he muttered.

The dragonet tilted its head, then crawled into his lap, purring happily.

Neptune let out a long, loud sigh. "Well, it's official: My dragon has the worst judgment ever." He stood up, holding the water dragon carefully against his chest, and started looking for a pad he could put it on.

A hand clapped his back as he started pouring warm water on his new charge. Sun knelt next to him, obviously trying not to laugh.

"Come on, dude. This must be fate," Sun said in a serious voice, though a quiet snort betrayed him. The fire dragon in his arms stretched its neck out and sniffed at the water dragon before nodding appreciatively. "Look on the bright side: You're with us!"

Neptune shook his head mournfully as he fed an apple slice to his dragon. "You don't get it. This is terrible! Training this thing is going to be hell, and I'm going to be afraid of it half the time! I'm gonna screw up the team, and this dragon!" He glared at the hatchling. "Why couldn't you have gone for that blond kid?"

The water dragonet yawned, seemingly unconcerned with its partner's mental turmoil.

Sage knelt next to him. "Sun could be right about it being fate, though," he reasoned. "I have heard it said that dragons often make up for their partner's shortcomings, and visa versa. Maybe this will help you overcome your fear."

Neptune sighed. "I hope you're right." He scratched his dragon's blue and silver chin. "Because this dragon deserves way better than a useless aquaphobe."

Scarlet was still standing, and was staring at the line of incubators, a frown on his face. "Hey, something's wrong."

The others stood, holding their dragons against their chests. "What's up?" Sun asked, craning his neck to see what was happening.

There was only one person in the line now. It was the blond boy that had been standing between Scarlet and Sun. They faintly remembered that his name was Jaune. He was kneeling on the ground, staring intently at an unmoving earth dragon egg.

"Oh, man," Neptune whispered, his eyes darkening solemnly. His dragonet chirped softly, tilting its head as it looked at the egg.

Sun saw Ozpin starting to walk over, and his heart sank. "Looks like that one's a dud," he muttered. "Man, that's rough."

"They'll give him another egg, right?" Scarlet asked, brows furrowing.

At that moment, Jaune ran over to the egg and started hitting it with his Scroll. Sage winced, hugging his own earth dragon close. "It doesn't matter. The death of that one will surely haunt him."

The newly-formed team was silent as they watched Jaune pull a stunted, barely-alive dragon from the broken egg and transfer it to a nearby pad. Sage closed his eyes and muttered a prayer. His cringing dragonet was shivering against his chest, whimpering in agitation, as if it could tell that another dragon was hurting nearby.

Then, after a long, tense silence, they heard Jaune's exclamation of relief, and allowed their shoulders to relax. Scarlet hurriedly wiped his eyes. "Thank goodness," he muttered.

Ozpin walked by them after talking to Jaune's team, and Sun stopped him long enough to ask what sex their dragons were. It turned out that Neptune's pretty water dragon was the only female of the group.

"So, you said she has bad judgment," Sun teased. "Can we say the same about any girl who throws herself at you?"

"Oh, shut up!" Neptune snapped. Now that the fiasco with Jaune's dragon was over, his mind was back to worrying about his upcoming future with his water dragon. He looked down at her trusting little face. _I hope we can figure this out, girl. And I really hope you're ready to be patient with me._

Once all of the dragonets were dried and fed, and all of the teams formed, the students were led from the arena and to the dorms. As they settled in, pouring bedding into each of the divots in the wall and letting their dragons curl up, Ozpin came by each room. He stayed long enough to inform the teams of their name and leader.

"You will be Team SSSN, led by Sun Wukong. Congratulations."

When Ozpin left, Sun let out a whoop. "You hear that? Led by me, and named after me. Who's awesome? This guy!"

"Hey, Mister Awesome? Your dragon is burning your shirt," Neptune said dryly.

Sun spun around to see that his fire dragon had crawled from his divot and had pulled one of Sun's shirts from his open suitcase. Several scorch marks already covered the fabric. "Hey! No! Bad dragon!" Sun tried to take his shirt back, only for the dragon to clamp his jaws down on the fabric. "No, this isn't tug-of-war! Give it!"

Scarlet's dragon barked excitedly, bounding from his bed and scattering feathers everywhere. He started spinning in circles, then fell on his side with a yelp.

"Careful, boy!" Scarlet scooped up his dragonet, which started wriggling and squeaking as he tried to run over to his brother.

Sage's dragonet whimpered, backing further into the divot. Sage noticed that the hay where it had been sitting was wet, and let out a sigh. "We'd better set up the litter boxes next."

Neptune looked at his dragonet, who was curled contentedly in her bed of white sand. She looked at her brothers, then rolled her eyes while giving her partner a look as if to say "Aren't you glad I'm not like that?"

 _At least she's even-tempered,_ Neptune allowed as he stroked her brow. _Maybe we can make this work._ He watched his teammates, listened to the different cries of their dragons, and reflected on the fact that this would be his life for the next four years.

Despite his nervousness, he found himself smiling.

 **So, I knew already that Neptune would be stuck with a water dragon. Giving Sage an earth dragon just made too much sense to not do. I based the design and personality for his dragon off of Cringer from He-Man, figuring that Sage would have the patience to deal with that. Since Scarlet is based off of Peter Pan, I had to give him a wind dragon. That left Sun with his badass fire dragon. For Sun and Scarlet's dragons, I decided to base their personalities off of Michael and Gavin, whose Rage Quit vids introduced me to Rooster Teeth in the first place.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	11. Hatchling Socialization

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, my friends! This chapter will see everyone getting settled in and naming their dragons. Coming up with the names was a lot of fun, let me tell you.**

 **My recommendation of the week is a poetry book: "Eric Carle's Dragons, Dragons, and other Creatures that Never Were." It's a collection of poems about mythical creatures from various sources, including a poem by Anne McCaffrey. The artwork is amazing, as one would expect from an Eric Carle book, and the poems are fantastic. Check it out!**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Blake was sitting on the floor of the room, Pit curled up in her lap, her eyes fixed on the door. _This is it,_ she thought. _My teammates are going to be here any minute._

Pit, sensing his partner's tension, squeaked and wriggled in her lap. He stretched his neck out and licked her face.

Blake smiled a little as her dragon's tongue tickled her cheek. "Of course you're calm," she muttered. "You have no reason to be nervous. You'll be the biggest dragon here."

Her ears twitched under her bow as the sound of footsteps approached. The doorknob turned, and she tensed. Then, the door opened and a younger girl's face peeked in.

Ruby looked around for a moment, then noticed a girl sitting near four divots in the wall. An earth dragon that looked to be a few days old sat in her lap. "Oh, hey!" She looked over her shoulder. "This is the room, guys!"

Blake stood up, holding Pit against her chest. Her heart stuttered nervously. "Um, h-hello," she murmured. "I'm Blake, and this is Pit."

Ruby stepped in. Her little white and gray dragon was curled contentedly against her chest. "Hi! I'm Ruby, leader of Team RWBY apparently, and this little girl is Storm." Glynda had informed the three girls of their dragons' sexes after the hatching. Storm was a girl, while Weiss and Yang's dragons were both males. She had also given Ruby her title of team leader, a statement that had stunned Ruby and visibly confused Weiss.

She gasped when she got a good look at Pit. "Ooh, you have little freckles!" She stepped forward, holding out a hand.

Blake watched as Pit sniffed Ruby's hand and gave it a single lick. He tilted his head at the wind dragon, Storm, and snorted.

Storm looked back at Pit, blue eyes impassive.

At that moment, Weiss stepped in, her arms wrapped tightly around her little ice dragon. She noticed Blake and Pit, and nodded curtly. "Hello. I'm Weiss Schnee. Please mind your dragon while it's near mine."

Blake raised an eyebrow. _So, this is one of the famous Schnees._ She looked at the pale blue dragon. _And that's one of their famous ice dragons._ "He won't get your dragon dirty, if that's what you're worried about," she muttered.

Weiss bristled, holding her dragonet a little closer to her chest. "I'm asking this for your dragon's sake. Ice dragons can be very aggressive if not handled properly. Introducing them will have to be a gradual process."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "I think you're worrying too much. He likes me and Storm just fine. Don't you, you gorgeous snowflake?" she added, bopping the ice dragon's snout.

Weiss recoiled, eyes flashing. "You still need to be careful. Do not hit his nose again!"

Ruby sobered, glancing to the side. "Sorry. I'm used to doing it to the hatchlings at home." She walked back over to the door. "Yang! What's taking you so long?" As if on cue, her sister's voice rang down the hallway.

"LET GO OF MY ARM, YOU DAMN SALAMANDER!"

Ruby winced. "Uh, one second." She quickly stepped out of the room and ran over to where Yang was struggling with her dragon, who had clamped his jaws down on her lower arm and was dangling stubbornly from it as Yang shook him back and forth.

"Uh, Yang? I don't think that's working." Ruby wasn't overly worried about the dragonet being injured. Once they got past the initial hatching stage, a baby dragon could handle a great deal of stress, since it was common for them to get jostled a lot in the wild. She was more worried about her sister popping a vein. Or five.

Yang was glaring at her dragon, eyes bright red. "He's done nothing but maul me since we left the hatchery! Yours hasn't bitten you once!"

Ruby's made a sympathetic noise in her throat. "He's just a bit fiercer than usual. Try putting him in your satchel." She eyed the fireproof satchel that the Violet family had given Yang.

"That's what I was trying to do when he bit me!" Yang snapped.

"Here." Ruby hoisted Storm so that she could hold her with one arm, and reached toward Yang's growling dragon. She pinched firmly at the base of the dragonet's jaw. He snarled a few times, but ended up loosening his grip enough for Yang to get her arm back. She wrestled him into the satchel, panting slightly.

"Thanks," she sighed, staring at the ground. "Looks like he might end up liking you better after all."

"Hey!" Ruby touched Yang's shoulder. "That's your dragon. You might be off to a rough start, but you're going to be his partner. Nothing can replace that." She glanced at the wound on her sister's arm. "I think there's some first aid stuff in the room. Come on."

Meanwhile, Weiss was kneeling near the divot that was closest to the window. She emptied some soft sand into it, allowing her dragonet to curl up on it. A few ice crystals appeared in the sand.

Blake watched quietly for a moment. _I should say something else,_ she thought. _We're going to be teammates, so we should get along, Schnee or not._ "So, how should we introduce Pit to your dragon?"

"I'm not sure," Weiss admitted. She looked at the earth dragon. "Pit?"

Blake shrugged. "Once you see how much he can eat, you'll understand."

A tiny smile came to Weiss's face. "I'm not quite sure what to name mine," she admitted, looking at her dragon's serene face. He was beautiful with his blue scales, but those pure black eyes were so unsettling, like a ghost's eyes. She tilted her head. "Hm. Perhaps Ghost is appropriate."

"Seems a bit common, though," Blake murmured. "What about Wraith?"

"That sounds rather aggressive."

"Specter? Phantom?"

Weiss perked up. "Specter. That sounds nice." She looked at her dark-eyed dragon. "What do you think? Specter?"

The dragonet tilted his head, then chirped once.

Blake smiled. "I think he likes it."

Weiss nodded. "Now, we just need to know what that monster of a fire dragon will be called." A shouted curse came from outside. "I'm saying this right now, he is _not_ sleeping next to Specter!"

"Well, I think Pit can handle him." Another curse came from outside and Blake frowned. "I hope…"

When Yang finally did come in, bearing a sulky fire dragon that was breathing smoke from his nostrils, she flashed a friendly smile at Blake. "Hey, there! I'm Yang, and this little asshole is Fang." She laughed, as if she hadn't just been in a rage a few minutes ago. "It rhymes, so it should be easy to remember."

Fang grabbed a mouthful of the cloth that made up the satchel, and started to tug, filling the room with a ripping sound.

"Hey, cut that out!" Yang snapped, grabbing the cloth and trying to pull it away.

Fang let go immediately. And then proceeded to chomp down on Yang's hand.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

Blake groaned while Pit started barking loudly at Fang. She was already starting to miss those peaceful, solitary days of just her and her dragon.

….

"Good girl, Twiggy! Here's another one." Jaune held out an apple slice, his smile widening when his tiny earth dragon snapped it up and scarfed it down eagerly. "That's it!" He added a bit more hay to her bed. "There you go. Does that feel good?" He scratched under her chin when she squeaked. "Good girl!"

Pyrrha smiled to herself as she listened to her team leader fawning over his tiny dragonet. Her own dragon, who she had elected to name Titan, seemed to be settling in rather well. He was curled up contentedly on his bed of fireproof cloth, snorting occasionally as his eyes closed. "There, now," she murmured. "It's been a long morning, hasn't it?"

Nora's wind dragon, named Freya, was snuffling curiously through the downy feathers of her bed, occasionally letting out a gust-like sneeze that sent the feathers everywhere. Nora giggled whenever she did this.

Ren's dragon, who he had named Ao Guang, was spinning rapidly in circles, spraying his partner with sand. Ren sat in front of him patiently, waiting for his dragon to finally get tired.

Jaune kissed Twiggy's snout before looking at the others. "So, I heard Ozpin say something about a socializing session in the afternoon."

Pyrrha nodded. "Yes. It's good for our dragons to get used to other dragons quickly."

Jaune sighed. "I hope the others won't bully her."

"Even if they do, it won't be severe," Ren pointed out. "That's how dragonets learn how to fight in the wild."

"I know. She just had such a rough start." Jaune frowned thoughtfully. "Maybe she should sit this first one out."

"You can't afford to spoil her, Jaune," Pyrrha warned. "Remember what Ozpin said: These aren't pets, and it will be a lot more difficult to get her adjusted. That means it'll be harder for her as well."

"It shouldn't be." Jaune picked up Twiggy, who was starting to doze, and held her close. "I mean, look at her! She's great."

"I agree wholeheartedly." Pyrrha gently patted the tiny hatchling's head. "Remember, she would probably be dead if you hadn't cared about her so much. A few extra hardships can be dealt with as long as you continue to do so." She smiled. "I have a feeling that we don't need to worry about that part."

Jaune shook his head fervently. "No way. She's my partner, runt or not."

Twiggy yawned, nuzzling against her partner's chest. She winced as a spray of sand hit her.

"Sorry," Ren muttered, picking up his dragon. "Guang, stop it!"

The water dragonet glared sulkily at him for a moment, blinked his odd-colored eyes, then started wriggling in his arms. Ren sighed.

Nora giggled as she watched the two. "You're so patient, Ren!"

"I've had a lot of practice," Ren muttered, giving his best friend a dry smile.

"Hey!"

Jaune looked around the room. "Let's see. We got the beds and litter boxes set up. The first aid kit is over there. The fridge is stocked with fruit and meat. Is there anything else?"

"I think we're good to start unpacking our own things," Pyrrha said. She glanced at Ao Guang and chuckled. "If some of our dragons will let us."

"I can take care of your stuff, Ren," Nora offered. "Looks like Freya's way more mellow."

"Thank you," Ren murmured, taking a towel from his suitcase and wrapping it around Guang. "Does swaddling work with newborn dragons?"

"Just do whatever would work with me!" Nora suggested.

"I'm not giving him pancakes, Nora!"

Nora shrugged. "I've never heard anyone specifically say they were _bad_ for dragons…"

…

Sun was covered with scratches, bites, and tiny burns. A bright smile was on his face. "You're such a little badass! Who's Daddy's Little Badass?" he cooed.

His fire dragon growled, tail lashing as he looked up at his partner.

"Careful, Sun," Sage murmured. "He'll start to think that's his name."

Sun shrugged. "I mean, it fits."

Scarlet laughed. "I think having a dragon named "Badass" would be a little too on the nose." He smiled at his googly-eyed wind dragon. "I've decided to call mine Nimbus."

"Nimbus the nimrod?" Neptune teased.

"Hey, watch it!" Scarlet huffed. "He's very sensitive. Right, Nimbus?"

Nimbus scratched behind one of his head fins and squeaked, tilting his head curiously.

"I've decided to call mine Zircon," Sage said, looking at his earth dragon, who had curled up in the farthest corner of his divot. "Hopefully, a strong name will give him some encouragement."

Neptune stroked the back of his water dragonet. "Mine's gonna be Nymph. I still think her judgment sucks, though."

Nymph blinked up at Neptune and softly licked his hand, causing him to smile.

"Well, Ozpin said we don't have to name them right away. So, until I think of something, this is Daddy's Little Bada- OW!" he yelped when another hard bite caused him to start frantically trying to shake his dragonet off yet again.

…..

The socializing area for the young dragons turned out to be an indoor arena with several large, fenced off pens that held a large number of toys, litter boxes, and food and water dishes. The newly-partnered groups approached the different pens with some apprehension.

Jaune's heart sank when he saw the group of big-muscled, snickering boys from earlier heading toward the playpen that had been assigned to his team. He swallowed loudly. "Hey. We're Team JNPR. This is Twiggy." He held up the tiny earth dragonet, who blinked her silver eyes curiously at the newcomers.

The leader, a brawny boy with brown hair and a large, dark brown earth dragon with striking green eyes, snorted. "I'm Cardin, leader of Team CRDL. I still can't believe you kept that runt. Looks more like an iguana than a dragon."

Jaune immediately bristled. "Size isn't everything."

Cardin laughed. "People only say that if what they got isn't big enough." He tossed his dragon into the pen. "Let's get this over with."

The dark brown dragon looked around, sniffing the air, then immediately started chewing on a tough rubber toy.

Jaune hesitated before letting Twiggy jump from his arms and into the pen.

The tiny dragonet blinked curiously, looking around, then made a beeline toward a thick rope toy.

Cardin nodded at his team, who dropped their dragons in all at once.

"Hey!" Jaune gasped. "We're supposed to put them in one at a time!" He reached for Twiggy, but she had already wandered to the center of the pen.

Two of the CRDL dragons, a gray-blue water dragon and a bronze fire dragon, lunged toward the runty dragonet, fangs bared. Twiggy squeaked fearfully, turning and stumbling back toward Jaune.

At that moment, Pyrrha let Titan jump in. The gold-orange fire dragon locked his gaze on the two approaching hatchlings and leaped forward, swiping at the air in front of him. The bronze fire dragon stopped and started circling, bobbing its head threateningly. The water dragon dodged around Titan and continued toward Twiggy.

Just before it could reach her, Jaune managed to grab Twiggy and pull her out, letting out a sigh of relief as he drew her close. The little dragonet was trembling, and her tiny claws dug into Jaune's Pumpkin Pete hoodie. "It's okay, Twiggy," he whispered. "Good girl."

By this point, Ren and Nora had released their dragons. Ao Guang was pouncing on the abandoned rope toy, rolling on his back and barking with glee. Team CRDL's wind dragon, a green and yellow creature, grabbed the other end and started to pull. Freya eyed Cardin's dragon, decided against approaching, and instead chose to help Titan in his scuffle. Within moments, the bronze fire dragon was scurrying over to its earth sibling.

Pyrrha noticed Jaune moving away from the pen. "Jaune, you can let her back in now. She won't be outnumbered."

Jaune shook his head, even as Twiggy clung tighter to him. "No, I think she's had enough for now."

Pyrrha frowned, flashing a glare at Cardin when he started snickering.

"What did I say? A freaking lizard!" Cardin laughed. "Take that runt out of here. This pen is only for actual dragons."

"Don't listen to him, Twiggy," Jaune murmured, stroking his shaking dragonet. "There's nothing wrong with you."

Twiggy just squeaked softly and hid her face in her partner's shoulder, her shivers starting to subside. She was safe if she was with Jaune. Jaune would keep her safe. She shut her silver eyes and yawned.

…

Meanwhile, Team RWBY was taking their dragons to another pen. The other team was led by a grinning monkey Faunus who was covered with obviously-dragon-inflicted wounds.

"Hey! I'm Sun, leader of Team SSSN, and this is my little badass, still yet to be named." He held up the black fire dragon, who kept wriggling and trying to snap at him.

Yang felt a slight grin coming to her face. "Man, I thought I was the only one being used as a scratching post. I'm Yang, and this little jerk is Fang." She patted Fang's head, barely drawing her hand back in time to avoid yet another bite.

Ruby's eyes lit up as she looked at Team SSSN's dragonets. "Oh, they're so pretty!" She held up Storm. "This is Storm. I'm Ruby, leader of Team RWBY."

Once everyone had introduced themselves and their dragons, Sun suggested letting the fire dragons into the pen first. "Get the worst out of the way, right?"

Yang agreed and put a hissing Fang into the pen. He looked around, green eyes narrowed, then started trying to scratch at the ground.

When Sun's dragon entered, however, Fang immediately stiffened. His ears twitched and he let out a low growl. The other fire dragon's tail lashed. The two circled for a moment, then leaped at each other, fangs and claws flashing.

Yang winced as she watched them, but made no move to intervene. "This is normal," she said noticing Sun's worried frown. "Dragonet scuffles can get pretty intense. As long as they don't break anything, we're fine."

The fire dragons scratched and bit at each other for a minute, before backing away. A few mildly-bleeding wounds were on their bodies, and their sides were heaving. Then, simultaneously, they turned away from each other and walked to different parts of the pen.

Yang waited for Fang to get close, then pulled him out. Thankfully, she had thought to bring one of the first aid kits from the room, and set about cleaning and dressing the scratches. Fang snarled at her, but made no move to bite her, apparently tired from his first fight.

While the fire dragons were tended to, Ruby and Scarlet let their wind dragons in. Storm trotted over to Nimbus, sniffing him curiously. Nimbus blinked his lavender eyes, then barked happily, crouching in a playful position and snapping harmlessly at Storm's shoulder.

Pit and Zircon were the next to enter the pen. The former took an interest in a nearby bowl of meat, while the latter immediately found a spot by the wall to curl up and attempt to hide. Sage heaved a visible sigh.

Nymph entered the pen, looked around once, then went over to her cringing brother, trying to coax him out of hiding.

Weiss hesitated before letting Specter in, saying a silent prayer that he wouldn't attack anyone, especially the skittish earth dragon. The ice dragon looked around, then joined Pit at the meat bowl.

Pit growled warningly as Specter approached, causing Blake to tense.

Specter gave Pit a disparaging look and continued to walk over. When Pit swiped at his snout, his head shot forward. His tiny, icicle-like teeth sank into the larger dragonet's shoulder, eliciting an angry roar.

Weiss bit her lip, resisting the urge to jump in and take Specter out. To her relief, the ice dragon released Pit, who growled once before walking sulkily away. Specter sat down by the meat bowl and started cheerfully eating.

Blake was sighing with relief. "Well, looks like being the oldest doesn't mean he'll get to bully everyone," she muttered.

Weiss nodded. "Perhaps, they will keep each other in check."

"Hopefully." Blake called Pit over and took him out. "Let's treat that bite, just in case."

The rest of the afternoon passed relatively smoothly for the new students. There were no serious injuries, the dragonets were exhausted by the end of the day, and almost everyone was feeling confident about their partners' futures.

All except Jaune, who had trouble getting Twiggy to let go of him, even when it was time to put her to bed. After some struggling, he ended up waiting for the others to go to sleep, then brought his runty dragon into his bed with him, falling asleep almost immediately.

 **For your convenience, here's a list of the named dragons so far.**

 **Team RWBY: Storm (female white wind dragon with pale gray swirls and blue eyes, owned by Ruby), Specter (male pale blue ice dragon with black eyes, owned by Weiss), Pit (male pine-green hybrid earth dragon with silver freckles and pale yellow eyes, owned by Blake), Fang (male red fire dragon with gold streaks and green eyes, owned by Yang).**

 **Team JNPR: Twiggy (female light brown and pale green earth dragon with silver eyes, owned by Jaune), Freya (female wind dragon with pastel yellow, blue, and pink patches and light green eyes, owned by Nora), Titan (male gold-orange fire dragon with blue-white eyes, owned by Pyrrha), Ao Guang (male dark blue water dragon with sea-green freckles and streaks on the wings, gray right eye, teal left eye, owned by Ren).**

 **Team SSSN: "Badass" (male black fire dragon with a pattern of orange and red that looks like lava-filled cracks, gray eyes, owned by Sun), Nimbus (male sky-blue wind dragon with patches of white that look like clouds and lavender eyes, cross-eyed, owned by Scarlet), Zircon (male dark green earth dragon with yellow-green tiger stripes and dark amber eyes, owned by Sage), Nymph (female pale blue water dragon with silvery patches and dark blue eyes, owned by Neptune).**

 **Team CFVY: Java (male deep bronze fire dragon with bright orange eyes, owned by Coco), Trifle (male dark blue, almost black, water dragon with deep green eyes, owned by Fox), Meringue (female cream colored wind dragon with soft green eyes, owned by Velvet), Mocha (female red-brown earth dragon with dark brown eyes, owned by Yatsuhashi).**

 **Professors: Ragnar (male ancient earth dragon with gray-brown scales that look like tree bark and gray eyes, owned by Ozpin), Nautilus (male pale blue water dragon with white eyes, owned by Glynda Goodwitch), Pepper (female orange fire dragon with black freckles and yellow eyes, owned by Peter Port), Gust (female yellow-green wind dragon with pale orange eyes, owned by Bartholomew Oobleck).**

 **Team STRQ: Tempest (female pale green wind dragon with sky blue eyes, formerly owned by Summer), Quake (male brown earth dragon with dark green eyes, owned by Taiyang), Phoenix (female gold fire dragon with red eyes, owned by Raven), Salty (male cerulean water dragon with black spots on the back and white freckles on the belly, sea-green eyes, owned by Qrow).**

 **Misc: Glacier (male stark white ice dragon with blue eyes, owned by Jacques Schnee), Brand (male orange fire dragon with patches of dark red and gold eyes, owned by Adam), Church (pale gray brood sire, owned by Taiyang), Tex (dark gray brood dam, owned by Taiyang), York (male bronze fire dragon with one blinded eye, owned by Taiyang), Caboose (male blue-gray sterile brood sire with stunted wings, owned by Taiyang).**

 **Whew, that's a lot of dragons. And there are gonna be more!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	12. Forward

**Greetings, my lovelies. We're back with more dragony goodness!**

 **I've decided that, for my dragon recommendations, I'll expand into movies, TV shows, and games. So, my next title will be an animated film called "The Flight of Dragons," a Rankin/Bass movie. It takes place in a time when mankind is just starting to lose faith in magic, and it is decided that a last realm of magic should be created for the dragons and other magical beasts that would otherwise perish in the evolving world. It has wizards, knights, elves, talking wolves, and, of course, dragons! It's a gem of a movie that, unfortunately, is not very well known. You should definitely check it out! I actually have one of the main dragons from that movie, Gorbash, as my Tumblr avatar.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

The next morning brought the first official day of classes for Beacon's newest Dragon Riders. There was a lot of grumbling and groaning, as several students had been kept up by their newborn partners throughout the night.

Jaune woke up early in the morning to a warm wetness in his sheets. He sat up, groaning when he saw that Twiggy was the cause. _And that is why we're not supposed to bring them into the bed,_ he thought. Breathing a sigh, he picked Twiggy up and carried her out the door and into the shared dragon bathing area.

After running some water into one of the tubs, he placed his dragonet in. Twiggy, unaware that she had done anything wrong, immediately started splashing around in the warm water. When Jaune lathered her scales with soap, she squeaked happily.

Despite his tiredness, Jaune smiled at the sound. "It's okay, girl. We'll just have to get you used to your bed. No more sleeping in mine, okay?"

Twiggy dunked her head in the water, snorted when some of it went in her nose, and flapped her wings, splashing her partner in the face.

Jaune laughed. "You're definitely spirited today. Maybe you'll be able to play with the others after all."

He managed to strip the sheets from his bed by the time the others woke up. When they gave him a shared disapproving look, he sighed. "I know. I won't do it again. She was just really shaken last night."

Pyrrha walked over to Titan's divot. "We may not be allowed to bring them into our beds, but we can try letting Twiggy sleep with one of her siblings until she gets settled." She smiled when her fire dragon let out a yawn and blinked grumpily up at her. "Good morning," she murmured, scratching under his chin.

Ren looked at Ao Guang, who was kicking spastically at the sand in his bed as he dreamed. There was a ring of white around the divot. "He even makes a mess while asleep," Ren sighed.

Nora booped Freya's nose, prompting a polite chirp and a slow opening of the dragonet's green eyes. She giggled. "Why do I have the feeling that our dragons should've been switched?"

Jaune placed Twiggy in her divot and took his sheets and blankets down to the laundry room. As he turned a corner, he nearly ran into Ozpin. When the Dragonmaster raised a brow at him, he started to stammer an explanation. "Uh, sorry sir. My dragon was-"

Ozpin held up a hand. "You are not the first student to try bringing a dragon into your bed, nor will you be the last," he said calmly. "Just know that there is a difference between loving your dragon and spoiling her. You won't be doing her any favors if you continue down the latter path."

Jaune nodded sheepishly. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Ozpin nodded. "I'll have someone change the mattress in your room while you're in class today. Just don't let it happen again." Sipping his coffee, he walked off.

"Thank you, sir!" Jaune called after him. _Huh. I wonder he ever let Ragnar sleep in his bed._ He tried picturing the Dragonmaster as a kid and the gray earth dragon as a hatchling. It wasn't easy to imagine.

….

"Ready for breakfast, Storm?" Ruby cooed, holding up a piece of raw meat from their fridge. "Think you can handle some meat today?"

Storm sniffed at the scrap of meat, then eagerly snapped it up. Her tail thumped happily, upsetting some of the down feathers in her bed.

Yang, meanwhile, was sitting a foot away from Fang's bed. Her right hand was bleeding from a fresh bite, and she was using her left to toss bits of meat into the air. The fire dragon snatched each one before it could hit the ground, chewing loudly, then opened his mouth and barked demandingly for more.

"You are such a little shit," Yang growled as she tossed him another piece. There was a hint of affection in her voice, however. After seeing the similarities between Fang and Sun's bad-tempered fire dragon, she felt a little better about her chances. _We'll figure this out,_ she thought. _One day, you'll be chewing up Grimm instead of me._

Pit was happily eating a mix of fruit and meat from a small bowl that Blake had gotten him. Unlike the younger dragonets, he didn't need his partner to hand-feed him anymore. He occasionally glanced up, watching Blake as she put on her clothes. He wondered why she had started covering her second set of ears with cloth. Didn't that make it harder to hear things?

Weiss, meanwhile, was opening a bag of partially-frozen fruit and meat. She put some in her hand and held it out, smiling when Specter took each piece and chewed slowly. "You're so well-mannered," she muttered.

 _Maybe I was overreacting, after all,_ she thought. _Maybe Glacier was just having a bad day when I left. Rusty could have been exaggerating when he said that ice dragons are naturally vicious. I mean, he's only ever cared for Glacier, right?_

She wasn't sure how long Rusty had been a stable hand, after all. He might have never met Winter's dragon, Steele, or Willow's dragon, Snowflake. After all, Steele went with Winter when she left home years ago to join the Atlesian Flight Squad. And Snowflake…

Weiss shook herself, pushing the thought to the side. It was generally better to _not_ think about Snowflake.

Ruby noticed Storm starting to scratch at her bed. Quickly, she picked the hatchling up and carried her over to the litter box. After Storm was finished, she got an extra treat. "It shouldn't take too long to train you," Ruby said cheerfully.

"Pit learned to understand the litter box pretty quickly," Blake said. "The others shouldn't have too much trouble."

Weiss looked at the clock, her eyes widening as she stood up. "When's our first class?"

"Nine. Why?"

"It's eight fifty-five!"

After a minute of scrambling, Yang cursing angrily at Fang as she wrestled him into the fireproof bag, and nearly tripping over the hatchlings' beds, Team RWBY rushed down the hallway to their first class.

….

Sage was just finishing clearing the hay in Zircon's bed and replacing it. The little dragonet had wet the bedding during the night. "It's okay. It happens," he muttered, patting the hatchling's head.

Zircon chirped meekly, nuzzling against Sage's large hand, enjoying how soft his scales felt after his morning bath. Still, he felt as if he had done something wrong. He hoped that wasn't the case. He didn't want the big creature to get angry and leave. The big one made him feel safe. Nothing else did.

Neptune picked up Nymph, stroking her under the chin. "Morning, girl. This is just a regular lesson, so I won't have to worry about swimming." He swallowed audibly. "Yet…"

"Nah, man. The elemental lessons start next week," Sun told him, ruffling his hair. "Don't worry. I'm sure she can drag you out of the lake if you fall in. You can't be that heavy."

"Not funny, Sun!" Neptune snapped, causing Nymph to jump a little.

Sun's expression sobered. "Sorry, dude. Just trying to lighten the mood." He patted his friend's shoulder. "Seriously though, I doubt she'd let anything bad happen to you in the water. She already loves you."

Neptune glanced at Sun's hand, then back at Nymph. "That's true." He hugged the little water dragon close. "I love her too. I just think she could've done better."

"Well, they say that being exposed to something you're afraid of is a good way to get over your fear," Scarlet pointed out. "By the end of the semester, you should be totally immune."

He noticed Nimbus pawing at his cape. "What's that, buddy? You wanna play?" He undid his cape and waved it in front of the hatchling's face.

Nimbus squeaked, jumping from his bed and landing on his face. He shook his head, his crossed eyes looking more googly than usual, then pounced forward.

Sun, meanwhile, was petting his growling fire dragon. "Good morning! How's my little badass today?"

CHOMP!

His eye twitched as he felt those fangs sink deep into his wrist. "Feeling frisky, huh? That's good. That's totally fine." He started flicking the dragon's nose. "Come on, pal. Let go." It was already looking like they'd have to pack extra medical supplies for class.

…

The first class of the day was held in a large, open-air classroom. The portly man with the mustache who had spoken to them before the hatching taught it. His name, fittingly, was Professor Peter Port. His fire dragon, an orange creature with a sprinkling of black over her back and snout, was named Pepper. She sat near one of the large windows, watching everything with knowing yellow eyes.

"One of the most important things a Rider can learn is how to communicate with their dragon," he explained. "Without communication, you are simply an unsure person controlling a giant beast who doesn't know what it's doing. Obviously, that is a very deadly combination."

He started pacing around the room. "It has been proven, of course, that the average wild dragon is very intelligent. Our elemental dragons are even more so, to the point where they can learn to speak after a few years." He paused by Ren's desk. "Your dragon is scratching the wood."

Ren pulled Ao Guang into his lap. "Sorry," he muttered.

"Anyway, a dragon is capable of understanding commands very quickly, as long as one is consistent when teaching them. That is what we will begin today. We will start with one-word orders. Over time, your dragon will begin to grasp our language to a point where you can give complex instructions that they will remember." Port stood in the center of the room. "Is anyone willing to volunteer?"

At that moment, Fang stuck his head out of his bag and sank his teeth into Yang's arm.

"Ow! You little-!"

"Miss Xiao Long, is it?" Port cut in briskly. "Please come forward."

Grumbling quietly, still trying to pry her dragonet's jaws open, Yang walked up to her professor. "Sorry," she muttered, her face bright red. "I'll try to calm him down."

Port chuckled. "That will take some time and several injuries, I'm afraid." He gave Fang a firm bop on the back of the head, causing him to open his jaws. The hatchling growled as Port cradled him. "This is a spirited one. Still, any dragon can be trained with patience and consistency."

"Was Pepper this difficult?" Yang wondered.

"I didn't have quite as many bites, but Pepper's main flaw was that she was so stubborn." Port looked fondly toward the fire dragon. "She refused to listen to me, even though I knew she understood me fully."

Pepper snorted loudly and bobbed her head. "Terrr! Gud!"

"Now, does this fellow have a name yet?"

"Fang," Yang replied with a slight grin.

Port laughed. "Fitting." He placed the dragonet on the ground. "Why don't you try giving him the forward command?"

Yang gave the professor a doubtful look, then knelt on the ground. "Fang, forward."

Fang was crouched in a defensive position, green eyes darting everywhere. He snarled at the sound of Yang's voice.

Yang thought back to what she had learned from her father. Sometimes, tapping the ground was a good way to signal where you wanted a dragon to go. "Fang, forward," she repeated, tapping the ground in front of her.

Fang blinked at the tapping noise, but didn't move. His tail lashed back and forth.

 _Why isn't this working? Even the newborn brood hatchlings could understand this._ She tapped the ground again. "Forward!"

Fang curled up and yawned.

Yang was aware of several eyes on her. Her own eyes flashed red, and she slammed her hand on the ground. "Fang, _forward!_ "

Fang jumped at the sudden noise and lunged toward Yang's hand. He snapped at her wrist, only to be stopped when Port picked him up.

Port stroked the dragonet's back, shaking his head. "Well, you got him to come, but it was due to him wanting to attack you." He handed Fang back. "When training a dragon, you need to be patient. This is especially so with a fire dragon. If both parties are too hotheaded, there will only be trouble."

Yang accepted her dragon, staring shamefully at the ground. "Y-Yes, sir," she mumbled as she returned to her seat.

Ruby touched Yang's shoulder, giving her an encouraging smile.

Port, meanwhile, turned to the rest of the class. "Now, then. Let's see how everyone else does. Spread out and try teaching your hatchling to move forward."

There was some shuffling and muttering as people tried to find a spot in the large space in front of the desks. Then, there was a cacophony of commands and confused dragon voices.

"Come on, Nimbus. Forward," Scarlet encouraged.

Nimbus just tilted his head and blinked, trying to focus on his partner. He spun in a circle, then sat down.

Ren was having trouble getting Ao Guang to sit still long enough for him to step away. Every time he placed the water dragon on the ground, Guang would squeak and jump up to lick his face. "Maybe 'stay' would be a better first command," he muttered.

Weiss was relieved when Specter let her place him on the ground and step away. She knelt in front of him. "Specter, forward."

Specter pawed at the ground, watching Weiss inquisitively.

Jaune, meanwhile, was trying to find a mostly secluded area for Twiggy, who had started trembling in response to the large number of bigger dragons. "Okay, girl. Let's give this a try." He placed her down, holding up a hand when she tried to run back into his arms. "I'm just taking a few steps back."

He moved back and knelt on the ground, keeping his gaze locked on the silver eyes of his dragon. "Okay, Twiggy. Forward."

Twiggy bounded toward him, leaping happily into his arms.

"Good girl!" Jaune praised, though he couldn't help but wonder whether Twiggy had been responding to his command, or had just wanted to be in his arms again. _Hm. Maybe I can get her to stay put for a few minutes, then call her forward._

He placed her down again and backed away. She started to run toward him, but he held up a hand. "Stay."

Twiggy squeaked, trying to dart around Jaune's hand, but he kept pushing her back. She barked in confusion, sitting down.

"Stay," Jaune said again, then slowly lowered his hand. Twiggy's front paws shuffled, but she didn't move. After a minute, Jaune tapped the ground. "Forward."

Immediately, Twiggy rushed over and hopped into his lap.

"Good girl!" Jaune kissed her snout. "Who's my smart girl?"

Twiggy wriggled excitedly in his arms, licking his face.

Jaune laughed. "Okay. Let's try putting you a little further away." He took a few steps forward and placed Twiggy down, holding up his hand. "Stay." He walked away, then turned around, kneeling. "Stay," he repeated, smiling when the hatchling didn't move. He tapped the ground. "Forward."

Twiggy took a step forward. Then, something large barreled over to her, knocking her to the side.

Cardin's brown earth dragon was standing over Twiggy, green eyes narrowed, mouth wide open. Just as Jaune ran over and picked up his partner, a blur of orange shot by his feet, nearly causing him to trip. In an instant, Titan was clawing angrily at the larger earth dragon, barking and hissing.

Pyrrha quickly approached and picked up Titan, who snarled and snapped at her face. "Stop that!" she said firmly. "Twiggy's okay now. Calm down." Under her breath, she added: "If you wanted to bite Cardin, however, I certainly wouldn't stop you.."

Jaune heard, and flashed her a tiny smile before glaring at Cardin. "Think you could control your dragon a little better?"

Cardin huffed. "Think you can teach that lizard to fight for itself?"

"I think someone's jealous that Jaune's dragon is so much smarter than his," Nora chirped, standing up and putting her hands on her hips.

"Why, you little-!" Cardin moved toward Nora, nearly stepping on his dragon in the process and prompting a warning snarl from Freya.

At that moment, a hand grasped his shoulder. "Mister Winchester, take your dragon and go out into the hall. We'll talk after class," Port said firmly.

Cardin picked up his dragon, holding it in one arm as he stomped toward the door. He shot Jaune a menacing glare over his shoulder as he went.

Jaune flinched when the door closed. "Why do I have the feeling that he's gonna hold a grudge?" he muttered.

Port cleared his throat. "Everyone, get back to work." He gave Jaune an appraising look. "And Miss Valkyrie wasn't wrong. Your dragon shows some promise. Make sure to keep at it."

Jaune nodded, stroking Twiggy's back as she continued to shake. "I'll try, sir."

Unfortunately, Twiggy was very determined to remain on her partner's hoodie, and no amount of coaxing could get her to move. Eventually, he sat down in the corner, petting her gently. He was joined by Sage.

Jaune nodded in greeting. "Hey. Your dragon had enough?"

Sage grimaced. "He hasn't even started." There was a lump under the left side of his open shirt, where Zircon was curled up beneath one of the wing tattoos. He smiled kindly at Jaune. "I'm Sage, by the way, and this is Zircon. We were watching when your little one hatched. I think it's admirable that you're willing to give her a chance."

Jaune hugged Twiggy. "Thanks. I already worry so much about her, though. I know she needs to get used to other dragons, but she keeps getting attacked by bullies like Cardin and his team. I had to take her out of the pen yesterday, because their dragons were ganging up on her."

"That's awful." Sage looked at Zircon. "Would she like to meet Zircon? He'd probably be more scared of her than she'd be of him."

"Okay." Jaune scooted over to get a look at Zircon's striped form. "Skittish little guy, huh?" He gently pried Twiggy's claws from his hoodie. "Hey, Twiggy. Want to meet a new friend?"

Twiggy whimpered, looking hesitantly in Zircon's direction.

Zircon yelped when Sage pulled him out from under his shirt. He tilted his head when he saw Twiggy, letting out a quieter squeak.

Slowly, the two earth dragons moved closer and sniffed at each other's snouts. Zircon's wings stopped shaking and Twiggy's tail wagged.

Both Jaune and Sage let out audible sighs of relief as their dragons got acquainted. Both were thinking similar thoughts: _Maybe there's hope for this little earth dragon after all._

By the time class ended, Zircon and Twiggy had started gently playing with each other, and even allowed their partners to try the forward command a few times. Jaune joined his team as they went into the hallway, feeling totally elated.

He almost didn't notice Cardin's threatening glare or the low growl of the brown earth dragon as he walked by.

 **I really enjoy creating parallel situations with some of the characters using their dragons, such as having Titan be super protective of Twiggy, Fang's aggression, and having Twiggy be physically weak, but much smarter than the other dragonets. I also love how this fic is allowing me to have characters that haven't even talked to each other in the show interact in this setting. You'll see more of that later.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	13. Elemental Class (Earth)

**Okay, before I even get started, I have to ask something completely unrelated to this story: What the flying hell is up with that new Pyrrha plush?! Like, did the people at Rooster Teeth all sit there in a room, look at the design, MAKE the design into a real thing, and say "Yeah. This is perfect. No problems here."?! I just…this is… I wanted JNPR plushies, but…not like this! LEAVE PYRRHA'S MEMORY ALONE, DANGIT!**

 **Ahem… This week's dragon recommendation is a movie that I can honestly say should be anyone's introduction to dragon movies: "Dragonheart." It stars Sean Connery as the dragon, and is one of the first examples of a character completely animated with CGI in a live-action movie. It is an incredible film, if only because Sean Connery is a freaking dragon!**

 **Enjoy!**

It was the first day of elemental training, and Jaune couldn't have been more on edge. He stood in a line with the other students in one of the outdoor arenas, holding Twiggy against his chest, hoping that the dragonet wasn't picking up on his nervousness.

Zircon was certainly acting scared enough for all of them. The striped hatchling repeatedly tried to worm his head under Sage's coat, whimpering.

Pit growled irritably when Cardin's dragon started barking at him. Unlike the others, who were being held by their partners, he sat at Blake's feet, tail curled around his front paws as he looked at the younger dragons with a superior snarl.

"You're only a few days older than them," Blake murmured. "Don't let your head get too big."

Pit snorted, his tail lashing against the ground.

The arena for training earth dragonets had four terrains. The one closest to the students was rocky and covered with jagged stones. Fake sand dunes sat a little further away. There was a mud pit on the farthest side. To the right was a line of trees, bushes, and flowers.

A whoosh of air caused the students to look up just as the gray-brown form of Ragnar landed in front of them. The mighty earth dragon blinked down at them, giving the dragonets an appraising stare. Almost immediately, the hatchlings grew quiet. Even Zircon turned his head to look up at the ancient-looking dragon.

Dragonmaster Ozpin jumped nimbly from his dragon's back and approached the students. Pushing back his riding goggles, he smiled at each of them in turn. "Good morning, class," he greeted.

A few people replied with "Good morning, sir," or some other mumbled response.

"So, how many of you are beginning to feel sleep-deprived?" he asked, his voice completely amicable and cheery.

More than half of the students raised their hands, including Jaune and Sage. There were several sets of baggy eyes, and many yawns that could be heard.

Ozpin laughed. "Having a dragon isn't all fun and games. Getting past the difficult times, however, will only make the good times more rewarding." He pointed to Ragnar. "Would you believe that this fellow used to be the most aggressive little hatchling you've ever seen? Put several of the fire dragons to shame."

Jaune blinked up at Ragnar. The earth dragon's calm, gray eyes blinked slowly.

Sage raised his hand. "Sir, does that mean dragonets will grow out of certain personality traits, such as being overly skittish?" As he spoke, Zircon took the opportunity to finally duck his head under his partner's arm.

Ozpin walked over to Sage. "May I see your dragon?"

Sage handed his struggling dragonet over. "His name is Zircon."

"Zircon." Ozpin nodded. "A good, strong name." He touched Zircon's shaking wings. "Hm. This is definitely a nervous fellow. Does he still wet the bed?"

Sage's face flushed. "Uh, yes sir."

"I see." Ozpin looked at the hatchling's eyes before handing him back. "Well, he's very healthy. And he definitely trusts you. If you haven't noticed, he trembles less when you're holding him. You will have to be firm with him while also continuing to be kind and patient."

Ozpin walked over to Jaune, frowning a little as he looked at the runty earth dragonet. This one didn't have Zircon's skittish nature, but she was clinging to Jaune as if her life depended on it. "You've still been coddling her," he said bluntly.

Jaune winced, staring at the ground. "I haven't let her sleep in my bed again, sir…"

"That's good, but it's not enough." Ozpin tapped Twiggy's snout. "I'll have you two do the obstacle course first today."

Jaune nodded. "Yes, sir."

When Cardin started to snicker, Ozpin was in front of him within moments. "I don't believe I know your dragon's name, Mister Winchester."

Cardin held out his dark brown dragonet, who growled and glared at everything with its piercing green eyes. "This is Mudslide," he said proudly. "Pretty impressive, huh?"

"You're holding her wrong," Ozpin said flatly, looking at how Cardin had his hands under the dragonet's forelegs. "You need to support the back feet."

"Her?" Cardin blinked.

"Yes, not that it matters. Elemental dragons are sterile, and their dispositions vary regardless of gender." He took Mudslide from Cardin and demonstrated how to correctly hold her. He didn't even wince when the hatchling bit his hand. "This one reminds me of Ragnar as a hatchling. Don't let her run wild, or she could hurt someone." He handed the dragonet back to Cardin, who scowled as he looked down at her.

Next, Ozpin found his way to Blake. He smiled at Pit. "He seems to be adjusting well," he remarked. "Has he been getting along with his teammates?"

"Storm likes him," Blake replied. "Fang doesn't like him, or anyone really, and he gets into fights with Specter sometimes."

"That sounds about standard for a team of non-related dragonets," Ozpin said with a nod. "Keep an eye on him. He has a very forceful personality, and will try to assert dominance any way he can."

Moving away from Blake, Ozpin addressed everyone. "The same will be true for many of your dragons. In the wild, dragons have hierarchical structures similar to that of a wolf pack, though they aren't as closely knit. In teams, it is common for one dragonet to become dominant over the other three and act as the leader. That dragonet won't always be the one belonging to the team's leader. In fact, it usually isn't. This is good, since it keeps one pair from having too much power."

After examining the other earth dragons and giving his assessment to their partners, Ozpin called Jaune forward. "Please introduce yourself and your dragon loudly and clearly."

Jaune cleared his throat before holding out his light brown and green dragonet. "My name is Jaune Arc, and this is Twiggy." There were a few snickers in response to Twiggy's name, and a few muttered comments about her size, which Jaune ignored.

"Very good," Ozpin said. "Now, since this is the first day, we will start things off simply. The terrains you see before you are only four of the many different terrains you will see when on missions. Today will be focused on teaching your dragonet to navigate these environments as quickly as possible. Eventually, when you start learning how to use your dragons' powers, we will move on to manipulation of these various materials."

Ozpin turned to Jaune. "Mister Arc, please place Twiggy on the ground next to you." When Jaune obeyed, Ozpin approached. "You will guide her through the rock field, then across the sand, then through the mud pit, then have her weave through the undergrowth. Understand?"

Jaune looked down at his tiny earth dragon, his heart sinking. That mud pit looked particularly intimidating. "Y-Yes, sir."

Ozpin held up a stopwatch. "Ready? Now!"

Jaune patted one of the rocks. "Come on, Twiggy. Forward!"

Twiggy, who had mastered that command by this point, immediately obeyed, scrambling to get up the steep rock, her claws leaving white scratches and her tail lashing. When she got to the top, she chirped proudly.

"Good girl, Twiggy!" Jaune started to reach into his pocket.

"You can only give her two treats," Ozpin called over. "Use them wisely."

 _Wait, what?!_ Jaune had taken to giving Twiggy a treat every time she obeyed him. He looked at her expectant silver eyes. "At the end of the sand, I'll give you one. Just stay with me, girl," he urged, then patted another stone. "Forward."

Twiggy tilted her head in confusion. Why wasn't she getting an apple? She jumped down and ran over to Jaune's hand, licking it. He drew away and patted another stone, causing her to snort indignantly.

"I know, girl. I'm sorry. Forward."

By the time they got to the end of the rock fields, Twiggy was in a thoroughly bad mood. Jaune was beginning to worry that she'd refuse to go any further. He knelt down halfway across the sand and patted it. "For-Ow!" he yelped, pulling his hand away as his fingers were burned. The sand was scorching hot.

Twiggy discovered this, and sat down with a stubborn growl.

"Come on, Twiggy. Let's just get this over with," Jaune called.

Twiggy snorted, her tail thumping against the ground.

Jaune sighed. _Can't say I blame her. This sand is really hot. I can't expect her to burn her paws for me unless…_ An idea occurred to him. He took off his gloves and shoes, setting them aside and crouching down. He could feel the hot sand burning his skin, and let out a hiss of pain. "Come on, Twiggy. If I can take it, so can you."

Twiggy blinked, her nose twitching as she smelled the burning of her partner's skin. With a yelp of worry, she bounded across the sand toward him. When he stood and led her to the other side, she tossed her head in relief. Her mood went up further when he patted her head and finally handed her an apple slice.

After the heat of the sand, the mud pit was a welcome treat. Twiggy needed no prompting to jump right in. However, she quickly discovered that her feet didn't touch the bottom, and started to struggle.

"Easy, girl." Jaune reached in to pick her up.

"Do not take her out!" Ozpin called from where he stood. "Let her figure it out."

Jaune groaned, reluctantly letting Twiggy go. He watched helplessly as she continued to flail, sinking deeper, her scales becoming coated in mud. She was so light, the mud would surely drag her down once she was covered.

 _Light._ "Twiggy, stop struggling." Jaune put a hand under her. "Stop!"

Twiggy froze, whimpering. She yelped when Jaune pulled his hand away, but continued to obey his command. It was then that she realized she was floating on top of the mud. Instinct kicked in and she started to paddle with her tiny front paws.

Swimming across the mud pit took several minutes, enough so that some of the other students were starting to audibly complain. However, Jaune couldn't have felt prouder when Twiggy finally emerged from the other side, shaking her scales off.

"Last one, girl," he encouraged. "We're almost home free."

Weaving through the trees and undergrowth was relatively easy, since Twiggy was so small. She was able to slip through the thorn bushes and dart between trees easily. At the end, Jaune handed her an apple and kissed her nose, ignoring the mud. "Good girl!"

Ozpin looked at his watch. "Seventeen minutes. Pretty terrible, but that's to be expected on the first day," he said brusquely. When a familiar voice muttered something about wasting time on useless lizards, Ozpin calmly called out: "Thank you for volunteering to go next, Mister Winchester. Please get Mudslide ready."

Jaune took a towel from a nearby station, wiped away most of the mud, and returned to stand near Sage. "That could've gone worse," he muttered.

Sage sighed. "I doubt Zircon will even get past the rocks." Zircon clung to him even tighter, as if to emphasize his point.

The class watched as Cardin guided Mudslide through the course. However, it became obvious that "guided" was less accurate than "forced." Every time the dragonet hesitated or started to growl, Cardin would angrily snap his fingers or slam his hand down, prompting the dragonet to rush to the next spot.

When they got to the sand, Cardin strode across, not taking his boots off, and whistled sharply at Mudslide, who hesitated, then bounded across the terrain, kicking sand into her partner's face at the end. Cardin said something to her that the others couldn't hear before picking her up and placing her in the mud pit.

Mudslide quickly figured out how to swim, though did so with much more thrashing and zigzagging than Twiggy. When it came time to run through the trees and bushes, Cardin snapped at her, prompting her to run right through a bush, scratching her scales in the process. At the end of the course, she was panting loudly.

"Fifteen minutes, and your dragon is exhausted and hurt," Ozpin said, his tone disapproving. "Discipline is a good thing, but it should not be overused. Your dragon needs to respect you, not fear you." He looked at the brown dragonet and shook his head. "See me after class."

Blake volunteered to go next, and managed to complete the course in twelve minutes. She attributed a lot of that to the fact that Pit was bigger and stronger than the other dragonets. He climbed over the rocks with little trouble, bounded across the sand, was able to walk along the bottom of the mud pit, and only got a few scratches when dodging around the trees.

"Impressive," Ozpin said, nodding slowly. "I may need to up the difficulty for you two, considering Pit's advantage. Still, advantage or no, you clearly have him well trained."

Blake smiled, barely keeping her ears from flicking proudly beneath her bow. "Thank you, sir."

Sage and Zircon ended up being last. As predicted, the tiny dragon kept jumping from the rocks and into Sage's arms. Finally, Ozpin told Sage to step further away. Sage obeyed, prompting Zircon to curl up in a ball, whimpering pathetically.

"What can I do, sir?" Sage asked helplessly, staring at Ozpin.

Ozpin was watching Zircon, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "I don't think he's going to do it today," he finally decided. "I will give you some training tools, so you can teach him in your own time. Get him comfortable with the different exercises, and we'll try again next time."

Sage nodded, his ears hot with shame as he picked Zircon up and walked back toward the line of students.

Cardin smirked as he walked by. "Should've done it my way," he muttered.

"I would never," Sage growled, not looking at Cardin as he walked over to Jaune.

Jaune smiled sympathetically at him. "Want to have a dragon play date after this? Zircon seems to like Twiggy. Maybe playing a bit will help him."

Sage nodded. "That might work. Thank you." He noticed the larger, silver-freckled earth dragon looking at him and smiled. "Hello, there."

Pit blinked his amber eyes at him and barked once.

Jaune looked over at the dragonet's partner. "Hey. Blake, right? You want to join us? Both of our dragons are pretty submissive, so they probably won't pick a fight with yours."

Blake hesitated. She was still having trouble getting used to her new teammates, much less other students. _Then again, it might be good for Pit to socialize a bit more._ She looked at Pit, then at the misfit dragonets. _Well, anyone who can be so patient with a runt and a scaredy cat are probably pretty nice people._ "Okay," she replied aloud.

After class, they walked by Cardin, who was likely about to get a huge lecture from Ozpin. Jaune couldn't help but feel sorry for the dark brown earth dragon who sat shaking in the grass. Before, he had just seen her as a bully for Twiggy. Now, it was becoming apparently clear that there was only one true bully in that duo.

The group went to the courtyard, where several other students were playing with their dragons, and allowed their partners to roam on the grass. Pit confidently started digging in one spot. Twiggy and Zircon looked at each other, then joined him.

"So, Blake," Jaune said conversationally. "Your dragon's a bit older than the others. What's his story?"

Blake, thankfully, had come up with a story with Ozpin in the days before the arrival of the other students. "His egg was a rescue. Some people were trying to do homemade injections on eggs to sell on the black market. He was the only survivor, and hatched without bonding to anyone. The police were going to cull him, or sell him to a cage fighting ring, but Ozpin managed to get him. Some dragonets can bond, even if it's a little after their hatching. I happened to be in the area when Ozpin was asking people to approach him, and he chose me." There was just enough truth in there for it to sound plausible in her mind.

Sage let out a low whistle, staring at the larger earth dragon. "He's certainly lucky. I wonder why it wasn't on the news."

"Ozpin wanted to keep it lowkey, and the police didn't give him a lot of time to find someone," Blake replied.

Jaune shook his head, growling angrily under his breath. "I don't get it. How can anyone treat a dragon like that? Those cage fights are evil!" He looked at Twiggy. "I know that, if I hadn't chosen to keep Twiggy, she'd have been culled. How can anyone look at a dragon and do something like that?"

"So many people just see dragons as animals," Blake murmured. "They don't recognize their intelligence."

"Even if they were just animals, they wouldn't deserve this kind of treatment." Sage shook his head. "Heartless people will look for any excuse."

Pit, meanwhile, got bored of digging and stepped away from the hole. He barked once at the other two earth dragons, who scrambled to follow him as he raced across the lawn.

Jaune laughed. "Well, looks like Pit has his own little pack now."

Sage nodded. "I'm just glad that Zircon is actually playing with him." He let out a sigh. "I hope he's just a late bloomer, and can be trained like the others."

Blake watched the dragons, smiling at the surprisingly-easy camaraderie she was feeling as she sat with her fellow students. "I think he'll be okay."

 **A lot of the early chapters will be more low-key and will serve to establish more about the world and show more character interactions. I feel that it's always better to devote more time to that kind of thing than less.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	14. Elemental Class (Fire)

**Hey, everyone! It's dragon time yet again. We're here with the fire dragons this time.**

 **My recommendation this week is a 30-minute cartoon that I saw when I was little: "Puff the Magic Dragon," which is based on the Peter, Paul, and Mary song (though with a much happier ending). The cartoon is about a boy named Jackie, who is filled with self-doubt and hasn't spoken in years, but is taken on an adventure by Puff in order to discover his worth and a way to be happy with who he is. Looking back on the cartoon now that I'm older, I can definitely see some references to depression and/or autism in Jackie's situation, which makes Puff's message of discovering how much a person can be worth even more special, I think.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

The arena was a charred mess of stone, shredded metal, and burnt targets. The students were an equally-appealing mess of burns, angry grumbles, and scolding voices that were doomed to go unheard. The fire dragons struggled, snarled, bit, and scratched at random intervals, eyes flashing menacingly at anything that moved.

Yang was running a wipe over some fresh scratches on her arm, wincing at the sting. In her fireproof bag, Fang was snarling and hissing like a being possessed. "Calm down, you little shit," she muttered, rubbing at the circles under her eyes.

Sun laughed as he tried to get his dragonet to hold still. "Wish I had one of those bags. Would make controlling this badass a little easier."

"Please tell me his name isn't actually Badass," Yang said with a snort.

"Nah. I finally decided on Huo. It means fire. Pretty simple, but it works." His black dragon snapped at his fingers again. "Though, Badass is definitely gonna stick as his nickname."

Huo's gray eyes flashed as he tried lunging toward the gold-orange dragonet being held by Pyrrha. Titan narrowed his pale blue eyes and hissed.

Yang stared at the dragonet, shaking her head. "How do you keep it so calm?"

Pyrrha shrugged. "I guess he was just born with a milder temperament. He is easily provoked, however." She thought about how many times during the past week Titan had jumped on another hatchling whenever it so much as looked at Twiggy the wrong way. He seemed to have appointed himself as his runty little sister's protector.

At that moment, a whoosh of air signaled the arrival of Professor Port and Pepper. The black-dusted fire dragon landed easily, casting her yellow gaze across the students. She snorted, as if amused.

Port jumped from her back and waved to the students. "Good morning, everyone. How are you feeling? Like a giant cat's scratching post, perhaps?"

A chorus of groans answered him, causing him to let out a booming laugh.

"Well, get used to it! Fire dragons are vicious little devils. Their aggressiveness will never truly go away. It will be up to you to learn how to channel that energy, and focus it on something that isn't you or your teammates." He slapped Pepper's shoulder amicably. "Right, Pepper?"

Pepper snapped at the air as Port slapped her, eyes flashing warningly. Several of the students stepped back. Port, however, didn't even flinch.

"She won't bite me for something like that," he said calmly. "I know how to read her. If you pay attention, you'll learn how to read your dragons just as well. That's why half of these lessons will be physical training, while the other half will consist of bonding and discerning what different reactions from your dragons can mean."

At that moment, Fang popped his head out of the bag and howled angrily, prompting Yang to try shoving him back in again.

Port strode over. "Ah. Fang, is it?" He picked up the bag, not even jumping back when the dragonet snapped at his face. "You're a lively one, but not the worst I've seen," he murmured before looking at the others. "You see this bag here? It's made of fireproof cloth and is used to carry around your fire dragons. Good quality, too. Some of you may know that there are several dragon supply stores in downtown Vale where you can get items such as these. I'd highly recommend getting one. It makes things so much easier during the early days."

He turned back to Yang. "Go ahead and let him out. He'll be getting his exercise soon enough."

Port then approached Sun, chuckling when he saw the determined grin on the Faunus's face. "Not letting a few scratches get you down, eh boy?"

"No, sir!" Sun replied.

"That's the spirit," Port replied as he eyed the two. "But, how exactly have you been disciplining him?"

"Uh…" Sun blinked. "I figured the biting was normal."

"It is, but you still need to teach your dragonet that biting and scratching you is not allowed." When Huo sank his fangs into Sun's arm again, Port sharply bopped the hatchling's nose.

Huo parted his jaws, staring at Port with a stunned expression on his reptilian face.

"Don't be excessive, but do consistently scold your dragon when needed." Port glanced at Yang. "Remember, don't be excessive."

Yang's face flushed as she thought about the various shouting matches she and her dragon had shared over the course of the past week.

When Port got to Pyrrha, his brows raised in surprise. "My, my. As fire dragons go, this one is nearly docile."

"He only really lashes out when defending his siblings, sir," Pyrrha explained, glancing at Titan's narrowed blue eyes.

"That's marvelous!" Port nodded. "Keep up the good work, Miss Nikos."

Pyrrha ducked her head humbly. "It's really mostly due to his nature, sir. I haven't done much."

"Don't sell yourself short," Port said, shaking a finger. "Without a competent partner, even the best dragons can go astray."

After examining the other dragons, including Dove's bronze fire dragon, a male named Tank who nearly took off one of the professor's fingers, Port began the lesson.

"Directing your dragon's rage is one of the most important things you can do. Fire dragons have a lot of built-up energy, making certain exercises necessary." He gestured toward a training dummy. "Things like dummies and durable toys can help give them something to use their claws and teeth on. Also, it is encouraged that you allow your dragons to get into scuffles. Closely-monitored, of course."

He clapped his hands. "With that being said, let your dragons into the arena so that they may get to know each other."

When the students exchanged hesitant looks, Port laughed. "Don't worry about them running away. Pepper has never let one bolt before. If you think there's danger, tell me, and I will have Pepper withdraw your dragonet immediately. Now, let them go."

Pyrrha was the first to put her dragon down. Titan tilted his head at her, then started sniffing the air. He looked at the training dummy and snorted with disdain.

Against her better judgment, Yang placed Fang on the ground. The lively red and gold dragonet immediately ran at Titan, fangs bared. Titan spun around and met the other fire dragon halfway. Soon, the two were rolling around on the charred ground, hissing and snapping.

When Port didn't react, the other students reluctantly let their dragons go. Huo jumped on top of Titan and Fang, making an impromptu dog pile, before being thrown off by Titan. He then spun around and started scuffling with a blue-eyed, gold-scaled dragonet that Sun recognized from the hatching.

Tank started to run in, then paused, whimpering at the sheer number of dragons, and tried to run to the side. One of Pepper's paws stopped him, prompting him to try attacking the adult dragon's leg. Pepper watched him with a patient, indulgent expression on her face.

Titan, apparently bored, broke away from the scuffling dragonet pile and trotted along the edge, looking at his fellow fire dragons curiously. Every now and then, he'd snap at one or swipe at another.

Fang and Huo, meanwhile, had gotten into an intense brawl, their rivalry from that first day in the play pen clearly not forgotten. Huo bit down on Fang's foreleg, drawing blood, while Fang slashed angrily with his claws and tried smacking the other dragonet's side with his tail.

Yang clenched her fists as she watched the fight. She had seen the brood hatchlings back home fight, of course, but this was much more vicious. Next to her, Sun was sucking nervously on his bottom lip. Trying to lighten the mood, Yang muttered: "Bet my dragon kicks your dragon's butt."

Sun blinked at her, then grinned. "You're on! Loser buys the winner noodles!"

Yang smirked. "Deal." She turned toward the wrestling dragonets. "Pin him, Fang! You got this!"

"Use that tail, Huo! Who's Daddy's Little Badass?" Sun called.

The hatchlings, riled by their partner's calls, redoubled their efforts to take each other down. Fang managed to get a grip on Huo's neck. Huo yelped and started slashing at Fang's belly with his hind claws. One of them managed to hit the soft scales, leaving a sizeable cut.

Yang gasped. "That's not good. Professor!"

Pepper was already in motion, placing her paw firmly between the howling dragonets. She picked up Huo with one paw while pushing Fang back with her snout.

Yang and Sun rushed over to get their dragons. Fang, now that he wasn't fighting anymore, was licking at his belly and whimpering, his earlier rage gone. He didn't even protest as Yang picked him up to examine him.

Sun took Huo, grimacing when he saw the bite marks on his neck. "You definitely gave your dragon the right name," he said to Yang.

Professor Port walked over, easily dodging the other scuffling dragonets. He looked from Yang to Sun. "Follow me."

He led the two downcast students to a door in the left side of the arena. Inside was a white, sterile room filled with medical supplies and tables meant for dragonets of various sizes. Yang and Sun placed theirs on two smaller tables.

"Now, then," Port said as he rummaged through the supplies. "Can either of you tell me what went wrong?"

Yang shuffled a foot, staring sheepishly at the ground. "We egged our dragons on."

Sun patted Huo's head, frowning when the fire dragon didn't snap at him. "I didn't think it would make them get any fiercer. They don't listen to us anyway."

"Yes, they do," Port said as he walked over to Fang. "They bonded to you. They do acknowledge this bond, even if it's largely with bites and scratches." He checked Fang's belly. "Hm. It's long, but not deep. He won't need stitches." He started to clean the scratch, causing the dragon to flinch and hiss.

Yang placed a hand on Fang's side, guilt swimming in her stomach. She should have known better. "Sorry, Fang," she muttered.

"There are many rookie mistakes that can be made," Port said as he taped some gauze to the wound. "I have seen them all. Some can have disastrous results. I'm only glad that you two learned this lesson while your dragons are still small." He quickly cleaned the other scratches. "Natural scuffles are one thing, but dragons should not be openly encouraged to attack each other. Are you two familiar with cage fighting?"

Sun made a disgusted sound in his throat. "I never watch that! Makes me sick."

"As it should," Port grumbled. "But the concept behind a cage fight is similar to what just happened today: Two dragons are shouted into a frenzy and tear each other apart." He moved over to Huo. "Now, I know you two had no malicious intentions, so I'll spare the lecture. Just remember: We want these dragons to control their aggression, not to become more aggressive. Riders have had their dragons confiscated because they were too vicious, and where do you think they ended up?" He finished wrapping Huo's neck. "The cage fights."

Sun and Yang nodded. "Yes, sir," they both murmured.

Port checked the two dragonets and nodded. "Good. The second part of the lesson will begin shortly. Don't let your dragons reopen their wounds, and you may return with me."

Yang picked up Fang and held him against her chest. Fang growled at her, but she figured she deserved it this time.

When they returned, a few of the other students gave Sun and Yang disapproving looks. Pyrrha, however, invited them to sit near her.

"Are your dragons okay?" she asked, holding Titan in her lap. The gold-orange dragon tilted his head and let out a concerned warble.

"Yeah," Sun replied. "We're gonna be more careful next time these two scuffle. Right, buddy?" He stroked Huo, who snarled sulkily.

Port stood in front of the class. "Now, then. I think what just happened showed that it is very easy to make mistakes when handling our dragons. The important thing is that we learn as much as we can and minimize the chances for even worse accidents." He started pacing in front of the students. "And one way for you to do this is to learn what makes your dragon tick. Now, reactions and expressions are covered in many of the basic classes, but it is especially important for fire dragons, due to their aggressive nature."

He pointed to Pepper. "For example, I can tell when Pepper is annoyed with me, angry, and when she is about to bite. I also know what actions will cause each reaction. All of your dragons are different. Some may need more discipline. Others might need to be ignored when they throw a tantrum. You will learn through trial and error what works and what doesn't."

One student raised his hand. "Does that mean we'll get bitten less?"

Port chuckled. "That is the idea. For the last half hour of class, I want you to simply sit with your dragons. Talk to them. Sing to them. Be silent and pet them. Do whatever comes naturally. Pay close attention to how your dragon reacts and what he or she does. Maybe your dragon will snarl before biting. Maybe their tail will twitch when about to lash at something. Take a moment to watch and listen."

Yang looked down at Fang, who was just starting to wriggle a bit. "Easy," she said. "Don't make your injuries worse."

Fang narrowed his green eyes up at her and snorted.

She started to stroke his head, only for him to hiss. Before she could draw her hand back, he suddenly lashed out and sank his teeth in. She winced, resisting the urge to yell at him again. Instead, she found herself thinking _What would Ruby do?_

Ruby, of course, was having the easiest time out of any of them. She and Storm already acted like they had been together for years. They were far ahead of the others in basic commands, tied only with Jaune and Twiggy. Sometimes, Yang wondered how much easier things would be for her if she had been born with those mystical silver eyes.

Remembering how Ruby had gotten Fang to let go of her on their first day, Yang pinched the base of her dragonet's draw. "Fang, let go."

Fang growled, tightening his grip.

Yang narrowed her eyes. "Come on, you damn salamander. Drop!" She pinched a little harder, prompting his jaws to reluctantly part. She took her hand back. Fang snorted and put his head down.

 _He seems to snort like that whenever he's sulking,_ Yang realized, then smiled. _Huh. Looks like I'm already getting this._

Pyrrha was petting Titan, who seemed more drowsy than anything. She looked thoughtfully at Yang. "You know, I just realized something. Fang could easily puncture through to the bone of your hand, but he doesn't."

Yang blinked. "Yeah?"

"Yes. His teeth are definitely long and sharp enough. If he wanted to really hurt you, he'd bite down with all his strength, but he clearly isn't doing that."

Yang looked closely at Fang, eying his teeth when he let out a yawn. She realized that Pyrrha was right, and this knowledge comforted her a bit. _So, he doesn't totally hate me._

Chomp!

Yang winced at the new pain in her arm, letting out a resigned groan. _He just mostly hates me…_

As the students headed back toward the dorms, Sun caught up to Yang, holding a subdued Huo in his arms. "Yo. So, neither of us really won that bet. Still, why don't we grab dinner at some point? I heard there's a great noodle stand at the edge of downtown Vale."

Yang smiled. "I'm game. A break would be nice, much as I love this little shit." She patted Fang through the cloth of her bag, eliciting yet another growl.

"Cool! How's Saturday sound?"

"Sounds good."

Sun grinned. "I'll give you a time near the end of the week. I'd better get this guy to bed right now, though. See yah!" Waving over his shoulder, he jogged off toward his dorm.

Yang adjusted her bag, sighing as Fang started to squirm. "Would you take it easy? You'll make your injury worse." She wasn't looking forward to explaining to her team why Fang was injured. She knew Ruby wouldn't judge her too harshly, but both Weiss and Blake seemed to have permanent expressions of disapproval on their faces. _Maybe I won't tell them the whole story,_ she decided.

She glanced toward where Sun had gone, realizing that she was actually looking forward to hanging out with him, dragon-free, on Saturday. _At least my people skills aren't as sucky as my dragon skills right now…_ In her bag, Fang let out a bark.

"Okay, okay. Let's get you some food." As she walked toward her room, Yang anticipated several more bites to her arms and hands before the day ended.

 **As I've said before, I'm really enjoying making these characters interact! I love both Yang and Sun, and always thought it would be fun to see more of them together. And Pyrrha needs some development outside of her crush on Jaune, dangit!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	15. Elemental Class (Water and Ice)

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! Ready for some more dragonet-bonding goodness? Awesome!**

 **Today's dragon recommendation is a book I just finished reading. It's part of a YA trilogy, and is called "The Girl at Midnight" by Melissa Grey. There aren't any dragon-dragons, but there are draconic people, as well as bird people. Did I mention that there's a gay dragon/bird relationship in this? Because, honestly, that's what has me the most invested in it right now. I always need more gay dragons in my life.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Neptune had been all set to fake being sick on the first day of elemental training. A reminder from Sage that there was no way he could do so every day for the next four years made him grit his teeth and walk to the water arena with Nymph in his arms. "Today, you're going to realize just how terrible your choice was," he sighed.

Nymph rubbed her head against her partner's chest, purring contentedly.

As he drew closer to the arena, he fell into step with one of the other students he had met on the first day. "Hey. Ren, right?"

"Yes, hello," Ren replied, slightly distracted as he tried to hold Ao Guang still. "I'm sorry, what was your name again?"

"I'm Neptune, and this is Nymph." Neptune laughed a little as Ren's odd-eyed dragon started barking. "Feisty little guy, huh?"

"He certainly is," Ren groaned. "Guang, settle!"

Ao Guang tilted his head, then started wriggling all over again. Then, he realized that there was another water dragon nearby and started to chirp excitedly, trying to get over to Nymph.

The two allowed their dragonets to sniff each other. Guang barked happily while Nymph continued to be the picture of prim indifference.

When they got to the arena, they saw that a small section had been closed off. In that section, listening intently to her Scroll, was Weiss Schnee. Her ice dragon sat at her feet, looking curiously up at her.

 _She probably doesn't have to get wet,_ Neptune thought mournfully as he looked at the rest of the arena. Half of it was taken up by a long pool. There were also recreations of other wet areas, such as a pond and even an artificial marsh. He thought back to the time he had almost drowned in Mistral's bogs as a kid and shuddered.

Ren noticed this and frowned. "Are you okay?"

Neptune grinned shakily. "You, uh, don't think we'll have to go into the water, do you?"

Before Ren could answer, Nautilus flew overhead, landing calmly in front of the lined-up students, pale eyes passing over each pair with an air of superior indifference. Glynda Goodwitch slid promptly from her dragon's back and approached.

"Water dragons are considered by many to be the most difficult to train," she began immediately. "This is because most people must accustom their dragons to only two terrains: the ground and the air. Water dragons must learn this, as well as how to navigate in various bodies of water. Oftentimes, Water Riders are the first line of defense for ships transporting goods or passengers, as most of these crafts cannot hold dragons, making it necessary for Riders to swim or float long distances."

Neptune shivered yet again. He winced when this caused Glynda to look at him.

"What's your name, and what's the name of your dragon?" she asked as she approached.

"Uh, I'm Neptune Vasilias and this is Nymph."

Glynda examined Nymph for a moment, nodding slowly. "You have a good dragon. Why do you seem so skittish?"

"I, uh…" Neptune blushed as he felt the eyes of the other students on him. His fear would become obvious soon enough, so he'd might as well be honest. "I'm scared of the water."

There was a loud laugh from one of Team CRDL's members, a boy named Russel who held a growling gray-blue water dragon. A few other people snickered. Ren was decidedly silent.

Glynda shot a frosty glare in the direction of the other students, effectively shutting them up, before turning back to Neptune. "If that's the case, I suggest you learn to master that fear as quickly as you can. Nymph chose you for a reason. You will be a Water Rider, one way or another." She gave him a small smile. "I've known several Riders who are afraid of heights. Yet, they are able to fly just as well as the best of them, some even better."

Neptune felt his back straightening. "You…really?"

Glynda nodded. "Yes, so don't worry. It may take time, but you will pull through." She went down the line to Ren, raising an eyebrow as she looked at his dragon. "Yours is certainly spirited."

Ren managed a forced smile. "Yes, ma'am."

"Keep being patient with him, and he should become more mellow over time. I'd recommend exercising him more during the day."

Ren nodded. "I'll do that."

She checked the other dragons, including Russel's, who was a female named Barracuda, before announcing that a water-based obstacle course would take up most of the day. "Lie Ren, why don't you go first? Let your dragon run a bit. Have him do a lap around the pond, swim down the pool, and walk through the swamp."

Ren bowed his head before approaching the course. He wondered why there was a pond as well as a pool. Wouldn't both teach a hatchling how to swim the same way? He was answered when he released Ao Guang into the water and saw a plant immediately wrap around the hatchling's ankle.

Ao Guang yelped and started to thrash, splashing algae-filled water everywhere. His head went under the water and he instinctively inhaled, only to start coughing. Then, he was out of the water and in his partner's arms again. He whined as he cuddled against Ren's chest, still coughing out mouthfuls of green water.

Glynda was frowning. "Strange," she murmured. "Use of the gills is supposed to be instinctive. Try again."

Ren stroked his dragonet's back. "Steady, Guang. Just paddle." He put the hatchling back in the water. Thankfully, Guang anticipated the plants this time and was able to focus on paddling with his flat tail. However, he kept his head above water.

When Ren took him to the pool, he was pleased to see Ao Guang adapting quickly, using his webbed paws to paddle while gently swishing his tail. He reached the end easily and shook out his scales. In the fake swamp, he had the hardest time. He wriggled a few times, causing mud to get all over his face, but managed to swim through, keeping his neck stretched out.

When they approached Glynda, however, she was looking at the dragonet with furrowed brows. "Bring him over here."

Ren took Ao Guang to one of the drying tables, where Glynda dumped a bucket of water over the hatchling, washing away the mud. When the water went into Guang's gills, however, he started coughing and tossing his head, clamping them tightly shut.

"I see…" Glynda sighed. "That's a problem."

"What?" Ren asked, felling a surge of panic. "What's wrong?"

Glynda knelt down and carefully cleaned out Guang's gills before examining the slits closely. "It seems that his gills aren't functional."

Ren's heart dropped, and he suddenly knew exactly how Jaune had felt when Twiggy had been unable to get out of her egg. "He won't be culled, will he?"

Glynda stood up, shaking her head. "Not if Ozpin can help it. Remember, he allowed your teammate's runt to live." _If this was any other school, however…_

She knew that most schools culled defective dragonets, unless there was a therapy barn willing to take them in. Adult dragons that were badly injured or deemed to be too fierce were treated to the same fate, except for the fact that the cage fights were often an option as well. Not in Beacon, however. Ozpin wouldn't stand for it, no matter how often the Council of Dragon Affairs breathed down his neck about it.

Ren let out a sigh of relief as he picked up his still-soaked hatchling. "It's okay. We'll teach you how to hold your breath, like a dolphin or whale."

Glynda smiled. "I admire your optimism. Why don't you let him rest?" She turned to the rest of the students. "Neptune Vasilias and Nymph. You're next."

Neptune gulped audibly as he carried Nymph over to the pond. For a selfish moment, he wished that she had been born with a gill defect. That would at least make it so he wouldn't have to deal with the water as much. Then, he mentally smacked himself. _She's totally healthy and you should be happy about that! Just chill, dude. It's not like you have to get in the water this time._

He placed her in the pond, shivering as the green water touched his hands. "O-Okay, girl. Do a lap for me."

Nymph, like Guang, struggled a bit, but when her head went under the water, her gills immediately opened and closed, filtering the water through as they were meant to do, her head fins pulsating in time with her breaths. She dove beneath the water, her shimmering scales barely visible beneath the algae.

She remained underwater, causing Neptune to grit his teeth nervously. Were her gills still working? What if she got caught on a plant? What if something was in her gills and she was under there, unable to get out-

Her head popped up across the pond from him. She chirped happily, then ducked back under again. When she resurfaced, she was right by Neptune, who patted the ground next to him, not quite wanting to reach into the pond. "Forward."

Nymph climbed out, tilting her head up at her partner. He seemed nervous. Why?

Neptune patted her head. "Good girl." He carried her over to the pool, where she immediately dived down, splashing him with her tail. He flinched. The water ran over his lips and he tasted salt.

When they got to the marsh, Neptune placed Nymph down and backed away. He could still remember the feeling of brackish water flooding into his mouth and lungs. Just the smell was enough to churn his stomach. Would water like that even be able to filter through a water dragon's gills?

To his relief, Nymph made it to the other side, though her scales were decidedly less shiny than before. Neptune picked her up and carried her over to the table, where Glynda dumped a bucket onto Nymph and instructed him on how to clean out the gills before returning to the other students.

As one would expect, the following students had varying ranges of success. Some dragonets breezed through the course while others thrashed and struggled and others refused to even try. Barracuda was one of the thrashers.

After class, Glynda took Neptune aside. "Future lessons will involve getting your feet wet. The arenas are open twenty four hours a day, in case you wish to get some practice in without your fellow students scrutinizing you."

Neptune nodded, glancing nervously toward the saltwater pool. Would he ever be able to reach a point when he'd be able to go into the water without having a panic attack? Maybe if he had Sun around to help… "Thanks, ma'am."

He caught up with Ren outside the arena. "So, your leader's dragon's a runt, and now this. JNPR's looking like the underdog team of the year, huh?" Noticing Ren's expression, Neptune coughed. "Sorry. Wasn't trying to be a jerk."

"I know," Ren replied. "I can tell when someone's being malicious. You were just trying to lighten the mood." He held Ao Guang close, even as the dragonet started pawing at his shirt, begging to play. "You're not wrong, though. We now have even more of a disadvantage than before. At least Freya and Titan are perfect…"

"Is any dragon perfect, though?" Neptune wondered. "I mean, Nymph's only flaw so far is that she sucks at choosing a partner, so I'm not one to talk. Still, I've always heard that dragons are really similar to people, so they all probably have disadvantages, right?"

"That's true," Ren said. "At least this is one that can be worked through." He glanced at Neptune. "I was going to take Guang to the play pens to tire him out. Would you and Nymph like to join us?"

Neptune grinned. "Sure!" As they walked toward the socialization area, he asked: "So, what does Ao Guang mean anyway?"

Ren smiled. "Well, there's a story my parents used to tell me about four dragons that turned into mighty rivers…"

…..

Weiss awoke the morning of the first elemental classes to an email from Glynda Goodwitch telling her to take Specter to the closed off corner of the water arena, as a lesson had already been prepared for her. Another email had arrived from Winter, which contained several video attachments titled "Lesson 1," "Homework 1," etc.

Apparently, Winter had volunteered to act as a temporary teacher during the elemental lessons. In the meantime, she would be sending Glynda notes about ice dragons until the professor felt ready to monitor Weiss properly.

Looking at the emails, Weiss realized for the first time that her father had never really made any plans to help her with her ice dragon. He hadn't talked about how the team dynamics would change with an ice dragon rather than a water dragon. He hadn't told her how instructions would differ. Weiss had just assumed that the necessary arrangements had been made. Now, looking at the hasty emails from Glynda and Winter, she realized that nothing had been done except for informing Ozpin that an ice dragon would be housed at his school.

Fuming a little, Weiss fed Specter and gathered her things. There was little conversation between the members of Team RWBY this morning, as they were all hurrying to get to their classes on time.

Ruby, however, did not shirk her morning ritual of saying hello to all four of the dragonets. On the first day she had done this, Weiss had tried to pull her away from Specter, but then saw that her ice dragon didn't seem bothered, so she didn't say anything more about it. It was important for the dragonets to like the other humans on the team, after all. Every morning since then, Ruby would greet each dragon and kiss its snout. Specter seemed to like her, Pit tolerated the attention, and Fang always growled sharply and snapped at her face. Storm, of course, would leap into her arms, purring like a scaly kitten. It was rather adorable, if Weiss was going to be completely honest.

Yang was almost the complete opposite of her sister, losing her temper at her dragonet almost immediately and unceremoniously shoving him into that satchel of hers. Weiss honestly wondered if such an angry person was a good fit for a fire dragon.

Blake seemed to be having an easier time than anyone else. Then again, Pit had had more time to bond with her, and was a little more mature than the other hatchlings. Weiss couldn't quite put her finger on why, but she had a feeling that Blake felt uncomfortable around her somehow. She wasn't sure if it was because of a fear of Specter, or what else it could be.

Honestly, even though it had been a week, she wasn't completely sure where she stood with any of her teammates. Most of the past few days had involved establishing and maintaining a bond with their dragonets. She knew that group lessons with the different teams would eventually follow, and couldn't help but wonder what the team dynamic for Team RWBY would ultimately be. Ruby was the leader (and Weiss honestly wasn't sure what Ozpin had been thinking in making the youngest of them their leader). How would she lead? How would the others interact on the battlefield?

Pushing these thoughts aside, Weiss walked alone to the water arena, spoke quickly with Professor Goodwitch, and went to the corner that had been set aside for her, opening the first lesson from Winter.

The video showed her sister in full Atlas military gear. In the background, Weiss could see the mighty ice dragon Steele. His scales were a pale silver color, and his eyes were a deep ocean blue. He sat on his haunches, head held high, frills attentively perked.

Winter started without preamble. "Having an ice dragon is nothing like having a water dragon. That isn't unusual, as all elemental dragons are different from each other. However, the point I'd like to emphasize is that an ice dragon replacing a water dragon on a team will cause your team to be completely different from any other at Beacon. You will need to learn to control your dragon's abilities, and how to compensate for the lack of a water dragon on your team."

Weiss felt her heart sink. There really was a lot that her father hadn't told her.

"Ice dragons are unique in that they can endure subzero temperatures. Their claws and fangs are deadlier than those of a fire dragon, and the spikes on their tails can be utilized as a very useful weapon. There is also their frost power. Like how a fire dragon can both breathe and radiate fire from the scales, so can an ice dragon with cold energy. Your dragon is not ready for that just yet, so we will begin with basic melee."

Weiss nodded, looking at Specter, who was staring at the Scroll curiously, as if he was trying to figure out how there was a person inside it.

Winter caused the camera to pan out, so that it was easier to see Steele. "We will begin with the claws. Steele, right slash."

On the video, Steele took a step forward, slashing at what looked like a giant chunk of ice with his right paw. He cut the chunk cleanly in half.

"Your professor should have provided several ice blocks for you. Demonstrate your command by running your nails over the ice, then give your dragon the order. Pause the video until you get it right."

Weiss nodded and hit pause before looking at Specter. His ghostly black eyes blinked attentively at her. "Okay, Specter." She walked over to one of the ice blocks. She held up her right hand and swiped at the ice with her nails, wincing at the feeling. "Right slash." She pointed at the ice.

Specter chirped and tilted his head.

"Right slash." She demonstrated again, then patted the ice block in the same way she would pat the ground when ordering him forward.

Slowly, Specter walked over. He looked at the ice block, at Weiss, then back again. Slowly, he raised his paw and ran the claws over the ice, leaving thin gashes in the surface. He yelped, then started to lick the cold water from his paw.

"Good boy, Specter! Wait, no-" Weiss yelped, then groaned as Specter, liking the taste of the cold water, tried licking the ice block. She was now staring at what should have been a miniature version of a truly majestic creature, except for the fact that he was gaping in confusion as to why his tongue was stuck.

Specter tugged, whined, tugged, and whined yet again. His tongue wouldn't move!

Weiss watched helplessly for a few seconds, before the dragonet was thankfully able to take his tongue back. He shook his head, whimpering.

"I'm so glad no one saw that," Weiss sighed. "Let's try again. Right slash."

Specter scratched at the block, right at the spot where his tongue had been stuck, and hissed. He looked so much like a sulky child, that Weiss couldn't help but giggle a little.

She unpaused the video, only for Winter to immediately say: "Also, if your dragon gets its tongue stuck, don't worry. The temperature will even out, and it will be okay in a little while. When it snows, expect it to eat a lot of it."

Weiss couldn't help trying to imagine Steele or Glacier getting their tongues stuck to a block of ice. The image was decidedly amusing.

"Anyway, you can now continue teaching it to slash with the right and left claws. Next will be its tail attack. Its spines won't be developed until a year from now, but it is prudent for it to understand the maneuver ahead of time." Winter turned toward Steele. "Steele, tail whip."

In the video, Steele swung his tail at the ice, causing chunks to fly all over the place. One obviously hit the camera, because there was a jump cut to the next scene. "Teach your dragonet this by lightly tapping its tail against the ice, then demonstrating with your hand. Pause the video here."

Weiss obeyed, then turned to Specter, who was making funny faces while trying to regain feeling in his tongue. "Specter," she said, causing him to snap to attention. She felt a surge of pride at this. "Tail whip." She tapped the end of Specter's tail against the ice, then smacked it firmly with her hand. "Tail whip," she repeated, patting the ice.

Specter slashed at the ice.

"No," Weiss said firmly. "Tail whip." She tapped his tail again, then the ice.

It took several minutes before Specter touched the tip of his tail against the ice.

"Good boy!" Weiss said. She smacked the ice. "Tail whip."

This time, Specter smacked the ice block firmly. Then, he winced and started to whimper.

"Oh, did that hurt?" Weiss asked, bending down to pick up the ice dragon. "I'm sorry. It's something you need to learn. You're such a good boy," she cooed.

Specter snuggled against her chest happily.

When the video came back on, Winter said: "Don't let your dragon whine about its tail being hurt. Ice dragons are incredibly dramatic, based on what I've seen."

Weiss blinked, looking down at Specter, who now seemed decidedly smug. She placed him back on the ground immediately, almost letting out a full laugh at the obvious pout on his muzzle.

"The last thing you will learn today will be a bite attack. If done right, the dragon will lash out like a viper before drawing sharply back. Observe." Winter snapped at Steele. "Steele, bite."

Steele lashed out, neck snapping to its full length as he bit at the air, then abruptly drew back.

"It will be harder to demonstrate this move. However, dragons are intelligent. What worked for me was to touch Steele's jaw, then mimic the act of biting both with my mouth and my hand."

Weiss obeyed, feeling a little silly as she bit at the air. "Specter, bite." She demonstrated with her hand after tapping his jaw. "Bite." She bit the air again.

Specter slowly opened his mouth and closed it again.

"Good boy. Bite!" Another mimed bite.

Specter blinked, then snapped firmly at the air, stumbling a little with the force of it.

Weiss nodded in approval. At least he was quick to understand. "We'll work on that. Good boy."

She turned the video back on. "By this point, it should be almost time for your lesson to end. Practice more until you are dismissed, and demonstrate to Professor Goodwitch at the end. She will report to me." Winter's expression took on the slightest smile. "Don't be discouraged. You are more than capable of handling the extra challenge involved with owning an ice dragon. My last word of advice is to not listen to Father. He honestly knows nothing, and I would have Glacier taken away from him if I had the power to do so."

Weiss gaped at this sudden, blunt statement.

"Until next time," Winter said, nodding her head once before the Scroll went dark.

Weiss smiled at her sister's usual, brusque manner. "Until next time," she murmured. She looked at Specter, who seemed tired from all this new exercise. "We will need to demonstrate once more before we leave, so don't fall asleep yet."

After the water lesson ended, Professor Goodwitch approached Weiss. "I was informed by Winter that you were to teach Specter how to slash with his claws, use his tail, and bite. Please demonstrate."

Specter did perfectly with the claw slashes, though his tail strike was a little ginger and his bite still caused him to stumble.

Glynda nodded. "She said that the claw slash would be the easiest, and that the others would take time. Good job." She smiled gently at Weiss. "Once I have learned more from your sister, I will be able to assist you better. I'm truly sorry that the necessary arrangements weren't made. I thought that your father had spoken to Ozpin, and Ozpin thought he had spoken to me."

Weiss pasted on a prim smile. "It's no trouble at all, ma'am." In her head, she was using several unladylike words to refer to her father.

"Very good. You are dismissed."

As Weiss walked back toward Beacon with Specter, she noticed several other groups of people with various dragons. She looked at her own partner, the only ice dragonet currently at any of the schools, and suddenly felt incredibly lonely. Her elemental classes would be mostly solitary, robbing her of the chance to get to know more of her fellow students. It looked like the group lessons would be the only times when she would really be working with anyone besides the professors or her sister's videos.

She shook herself. _I've survived without the company of my peers for this long, and I have Specter now. I'm perfectly content._ Nodding once to herself, she walked back toward the dorm, wondering what Winter's homework assignment would be and when she would study for Professor Oobleck's next written test on dragon anatomy.

 **I'm really happy to be doing this AU, because it allows me to explore things that really weren't explored in canon, such as Weiss's sense of isolation and Neptune's aquaphobia. I really hate that his fear of water was basically used as a one-time joke. Phobias are serious, okay? I have a phobia of wasps and bees that has kept me from venturing outside on certain days in the past. I've been able to slowly work on my fear of honeybees, but I know that I'll never be able to even look at a photo of a wasp without my heart starting to race. Having Neptune overcome his fear will be a big part of his character arc here.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	16. Elemental Class (Wind)

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! This week, we get to see the wind dragons at work.**

 **This week's recommendation is one of my favorite video games of all time, Dragon Age: Origins. In the game, you live in the kingdom of Ferelden, which is being plagued by creatures known as Darkspawn (the leader of which is a giant dragon). You become a Grey Warden, one of the warriors tasked with fighting the Darkspawn. This game is freaking amazing, because your backstory changes depending on what race and class you choose to be. Dragon Age II is also a fun game, though not as good as Origins in my opinion. As for Dragon Age: Inquisition… *holds back long rant about how I've owned the game since it first came out but do not own a computer with the processing power necessary to play it so goddammit!***

 **Ahem, anyway… Enjoy!**

Ruby jumped out of bed that morning. Today was the first day of elemental lessons, and she couldn't be more excited! She wondered what the first lessons involving wind dragons would involve. Would they be taught to fly? Would it be a session devoted to learning more about wind dragon mannerisms? Anything could happen! Due to growing up with Tempest, she was convinced that she could handle anything.

Skipping over to the divots, she leaned down to kiss each Team RWBY dragonet awake. "Good morning, Specter."

Specter opened his black eyes and chirped sleepily.

She skipped over Storm, saving her for last. "Good morning, Fang."

As usual, Fang growled and snapped at her face, barely missing her nose.

Not bothered, she moved on to Pit. "Good morning, Pit."

Pit blinked up at her and yawned.

She returned to where Storm was just opening her little blue eyes. "Good morning, Storm!"

Immediately, Storm woke up fully and jumped into Ruby's arms, squeaking happily as her partner showered her with kisses and back scratches.

Ruby giggled, nuzzling her dragonet before placing her back on the bed of down. "Let's get you some breakfast. You have a big day ahead of you!"

She couldn't believe it had only been a week since the hatching of her beloved dragonet. Already, she couldn't imagine life without her. It was like having Tempest's unfailing loyalty and devotion combined with the wide-eyed innocence of a child. Ruby had never loved anything quite this much.

She was practically floating as she took Storm to the wind arena, looking around at the other students. While she'd usually shy away from them, having her dragon in her arms made her feel ten-times more capable of starting a conversation.

It also helped that she recognized one of the students. "Hey, Nora!" she called, running to catch up with the ginger-haired girl.

Nora paused, grinning as Ruby ran over. "Hey, Ruby." She smiled at Storm. "Hey, gorgeous!"

Ruby lightly tapped Freya's snout in greeting before continuing toward the arena with Nora. "So, how's your team been adjusting?"

Nora shrugged. "Twiggy's still scared of a lot of things, and Guang is still crazy, but nothing bad has happened. I'm feeling pretty confident." She hugged Freya. "This little girl can keep them in line."

"You think she's the alpha dragon of the group?" Ruby asked, remembering Port's lesson stating that the lead dragon in a team wasn't usually the leader's dragon.

"Not sure," Nora said. "My money's on Titan, honestly. He's calm like Freya, but has a more forceful personality. Who do you think your alpha will be?"

Ruby thought for a moment. "Well, Fang's a little too aggressive. I'd say it'll either be Pit or Specter. Probably Pit, since he's older." Storm was pretty calm, but was mostly content with going with the flow, Ruby found. There wasn't a lot of assertiveness in her personality.

They arrived at the arena, moving to stand next to Scarlet. Ruby whispered a greeting to his googly-eyed dragon just as a whoosh of air signaled the arrival of their professor.

A yellow-green dragon with pale orange eyes landed, and her rider practically leaped from her back. In his hand was a large thermos. He pushed back his goggles, revealing thick glasses that obscured his eyes. "Greetings, students! My name is Doctor Oobleck, and I will be instructing you on how to train wind dragons."

He zipped forward so that he was right in front of the line. "Wind dragons are the first aerial defense in any team, making early development of wing muscles very important!" He zipped to one end of the line. "So, unlike the other dragon classes, we will be starting on flying almost immediately!" He zoomed to the other end of the line, pausing to look at Sky Lark's yellow-green dragon, who blinked his yellow eyes. "My god, if elementals weren't sterile, I'd wonder if Gust was this little fellow's mother." Then, he zipped back over to his dragon.

"Gust, show wings!"

Obligingly, Gust sat back on her haunches and extended her wings. Fully stretched out, they cast a shadow over half of the arena. They were at least twice the length of her body from the nose to the base of her tail. Sunlight shined through the membranes, coming out in a greenish glow. There were several awed gasps.

"Good girl, Gust. Good girl." Doctor Oobleck replied, prompting the dragon to withdraw her wings. "As you can see, large wings are one of the most distinct features of a wind dragon. Wing to body ratio is important in determining whether a dragon will be better at flying or fighting, and whether they're better at sprinting or flying for long distances."

"Now, let me examine your dragons." He zipped over to Ruby. "Name?"

"Ruby Rose, sir!" Ruby promptly replied. "And this is Storm."

"Wonderful name, wonderful." The doctor took the dragonet and examined her, clicking his tongue. "Hm. Average body to wing ratio. Smaller head fins. Tail will likely be longer and whiplike, leading to quick turns." He handed the hatchling back, then moved on to Nora and Freya.

"Larger body to wing ratio, will make it necessary to develop stronger flight muscles. Buff legs and strong chest. Good for taking hits and being buffeted by the wind."

He went to Scarlet and Nimbus, eyebrows lowering as he took the dragonet. "Small body to wing ratio, will have powerful wing strokes. Seems to be cross-eyed. We'll see if he grows out of it. Could lead to difficulty in the air."

Scarlet took Nimbus back, frowning nervously as he held his dragonet close.

Doctor Oobleck continued down the line, making notes about all of the dragons. Sky's wind dragon, named Tornado, had a larger body to wing ratio and a stronger tail, good for acting as a rudder.

"Now, then! Today, we will be exercising our dragons. That's right, exercise! Being in the air requires strong lungs, especially when the air gets thinner higher up. The head fins help to filter some of that air, but regular breaths are still recommended when possible." He took a swig from his thermos before indicating the arena, which was an obstacle course of ladders and platforms. "We will go one at a time. Those not using the obstacle course will jog their dragons on the track just over there. Miss Valkyrie and Freya! You will be first. Chop chop, now!"

Nora placed Freya on the ground and ran toward the obstacle course, noticing that there were two paths, a larger one for the humans, and a smaller one for the dragonets, making it necessary for both parties to overcome similar challenges. She ran up to a ladder and tapped the top of the smaller one. "Forward," she said before climbing up her own ladder.

Freya watched Nora for a moment, then started climbing. Her claws slipped on the rungs of the ladder, and her wings kept getting in the way, causing her to fall a few times. In the end, she used her tail to push herself up halfway, then scrambled the rest of the way.

The platform after the ladder ended abruptly in a small drop. Nora jumped immediately, then whistled for Freya to do the same. The dragonet hesitated before jumping, landing on her side. Thankfully, there was a padded mat at the bottom, which softened her fall.

The rest of the obstacle course had similar challenges. At one point, the two had to climb together up a grid made of ropes. There was much falling and fumbling at that station. At the end, Doctor Oobleck clicked his stopwatch.

"Fifteen minutes. Not bad for a beginner. Scarlet David and Nimbus!" he called.

Scarlet placed Nimbus on the ground, watching as his cross-eyed dragonet immediately stumbled to the right. He quickly picked the hatchling up and set him on the correct path.

"Hey, isn't your dragon a little young to be drunk?" Sky Lark called from the track, laughing loudly at his own joke. A few other people snickered. Ruby and Nora were not among them.

"Thank you for volunteering to go next, Mister Lark!" Doctor Oobleck shouted. "Please focus on running the track in the meantime."

Scarlet patted the top of the ladder, giving the forward command. He climbed his own ladder, wincing as Nimbus repeatedly slipped during his ascent. To his surprise, however, the googly wind dragonet didn't need any prompting to jump from the platform.

Nimbus took a running leap, squeaking excitedly. His large wings unfurled, catching the air beneath them for a few seconds. He was gliding through the air, only to crash into the next obstacle. He sat up, shaking his head.

"Well done!" Doctor Oobleck called. "Perfect glide, not so perfect landing, but that's to be expected."

Scarlet ran over to make sure Nimbus hadn't hurt his head. "Good boy, Nimbus," he murmured. "Don't listen to Sky. You're going to be a natural flier."

Nimbus nuzzled against his hand, purring loudly.

The rest of the course went similarly, with Nimbus having trouble climbing but managing to glide (and crash) twice more. They spent five minutes on the rope grid alone.

Doctor Oobleck checked his watch. "Eighteen minutes. A tad slow, but I do see a lot of potential. Sky Lark and Tornado! Front and center!"

Tornado turned out to be the opposite of Nimbus: He excelled at climbing, but took a tumble at each jumping station. When they got to the end after seventeen minutes, Doctor Oobleck murmured: "All dragons have shortcomings, Mister Lark, even yours. Think about that before you try being funny in the future."

Ruby and Storm ended up going last, and immediately ran into a problem: Storm did not want to leave her partner's side.

When they approached the first ladder, Ruby had no trouble getting Storm to scramble toward the top. However, as soon as Ruby started up her ladder, Storm backtracked and tried to follow.

"No, Storm. Go up yours." Ruby got down and placed Storm by the ladder. "Forward." She started to climb her own, only to groan as Storm immediately abandoned her course yet again. "No, Storm."

After a few more failed attempts to get Storm to listen, Ruby heard Doctor Oobleck's approaching footsteps. "I'm sorry, sir," she muttered. "I'm usually better at-"

"Not at all, not at all," the doctor interrupted, waving his hand dismissively. "Your dragon clearly knows how to listen to you. More importantly, she loves you. However, a dragon and its rider should not be joined at the hip _all_ the time, contrary to popular belief." He picked up the docile dragonet. "A sense of independence needs to be fostered."

Ruby nodded. "How do I do that?"

Doctor Oobleck smiled gently. "Strange as it may sound, I would recommend leaving your dragon from time to time. Go out and do something with your human and Faunus friends, leaving your dragonet in the care of one of your teammates or another rider."

"Wait, what?" Ruby stared.

"It will be good for her," the doctor insisted. "Dragons need to know how to interact with other people, particularly their partners' teammates. Ask one of them to mind her this weekend, and go do something on your own. That's my best advice." He placed Storm down. "For now, get through the obstacle course. Let's see if Storm figures out where she's supposed to go."

Ruby ran through her part of the obstacle course. Storm, refusing to be separated from her, tried climbing the larger ladders until Ruby jumped, then elected to bolt around the platform to rejoin her. They struggled with the rope grid before eventually making it to the end.

"Twenty five minutes." Doctor Oobleck patted her shoulder. "Don't worry. As dragonet problems go, a dragon who loves you too much is not the worst issue you could face."

Ruby managed a tiny smile. "Thank you, sir."

After the lesson ended, Ruby was walking away from the arena, feeling a little disillusioned as she held Storm against her chest. She jumped when Nora ran up to her.

"Hey, Ruby," she greeted. "Don't worry about the course. I'm sure you'll do better."

"I know," Ruby sighed. "I just…this is the first time I've had any issues with dragons. Back home, Tempest and all the others did what I asked them to right away." She noticed Scarlet walking by. "Hey, Scarlet! That was some pretty good gliding Nimbus was doing."

Scarlet smiled. "Thanks. Hopefully, it makes up for his sight." He joined the two girls as they walked down the path. "I heard Oobleck say something about going out without your dragon. Maybe the three of us can do something this weekend. I heard there was a store in town selling dragon accessories. It could be fun just to look."

Nora snorted. "Accessories? Like clothes?"

"Actually, yes," Scarlet replied. "There are also tail rings, arm bands, dragon-safe nail paint…"

Ruby giggled. "I've heard of stores like that. Dad never got anything from them, of course. I think Quake would have smacked him against the wall if he had tried painting his claws."

"It does seem pretty goofy. So, you in?" Scarlet asked.

When Nora nodded, Ruby did as well. "Sure. How about Saturday?"

"Saturday, it is!" Scarlet said, grinning brightly. "Here, let's exchange Scroll numbers." Once that was done, he waved to the girls. "Well, I'd better give this guy a warm bath. All that gliding had to be exhausting, huh buddy?"

Nimbus chirped happily, his tail thumping against his partner's leg.

Ruby and Nora talked for a little while before parting ways. As she returned to the dorm, Ruby looked down at Storm, who was gazing adoringly up at her.

"You'll be fine for a few hours, right?" she muttered. Part of her didn't want to leave Storm at all, but she knew that Doctor Oobleck was right. One day, Storm would be too big for the dorm rooms and would have to live in the wind stable. Teaching her how to live separately from her partner was vital.

 _At least I've been able to make some friends._ She thought about the weekend, and the fact that she had managed to arrange hanging out with people without Yang's assistance. Despite her failures in class that day, a slight spring returned to her step.

 **I didn't want to just hand Ruby a perfect dragon, so I decided to come up with a problem that often arises in both pets and children: clinginess. I still remember back when we first got our beagle and he would howl whenever left alone in his crate… Good lord, he howled so much…**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	17. An Evening Out

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! This chapter focuses on more human bonding, and a bit of worldbuilding.**

 **Today's dragon recommendation is a short film I saw as a kid called "Merlin and the Dragons." It's an animated work written by Jane Yolen and based on Arthurian legend. Fun fact: The story got one key point wrong. In the original tale of the dragons, the red one, representing the Welsh and Uther Pendragon, kills the white one, which represents the Saxons and Vortigern. In the movie, the roles are reversed. I'm not sure why.**

 **Another fun fact: The white dragon is sometimes called Gwiber, which is Welsh for viper or adder. The red one is called Y Ddraig Goch, which literally translates to "the red dragon" and is also the emblem of the flag of Wales.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

"So, are you sure you guys will be okay?" Ruby asked for what was probably the hundredth time.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Ruby, it's only going to be a few hours. We'll be fine. It's not like you're leaving Storm with a bunch of strangers."

"I know, but…"

Blake walked over and patted Ruby's shoulder. "I know how you feel. When I first got here, Ozpin made me go off on my own and leave Pit with him for a few hours every week. I got nervous, but Pit was always fine by the time I got back. You can trust us."

"I trust you!" Ruby quickly assured her. "I just don't want Storm to miss me too much."

"I doubt Fang will miss me at all," Yang muttered, glancing up from her notes to look at the little fire dragon, who was dozing in his divot, snoring loudly. She glanced at her Scroll, which read two o'clock. Sun had texted asking to meet her in the courtyard at five.

"Yes, he will. You stop that!" Ruby gently punched Yang's arm. "He's gonna be totally jealous that his partner's gonna be off on a _date_."

Yang lightly shoved Ruby away (which meant causing her to crash into the next bed). "It's not a date. We're just de-stressing from all the fire dragon crap we've been putting up with."

"Yeah, okay," Ruby giggled. Her Scroll buzzed. "Oh, I gotta go." She walked over to Storm's divot. "Okay, Storm. You be good for Weiss and Blake. I promise I'll be back, and I'll bring you a treat. How's that sound?"

Storm purred, her tail thumping as Ruby scratched under her chin.

Ruby stood, sensing her dragon's eyes on her as she walked toward the door. _She needs to get used to being separated from you. Just keep going._ Once she was on the other side of the door, she hurried down the hallway, rounding a corner just as Storm's first confused bark reached her ears.

That sound alone was almost enough to make her turn back, but she forced herself to keep going. When she got to the courtyard, Nora and Scarlet were already waiting.

"Hey, Ruby!" Nora paused, frowning when she saw Ruby's face. "You okay?"

"Yeah…" Ruby sighed. "Storm tried calling to me when I left. I feel terrible."

"You shouldn't," Scarlet said. "Remember, it's something they need to learn. Your teammates will take good care of her."

"I know." Ruby glanced over her shoulder one more time before forcing a smile. "Okay, Scarlet. Lead the way!"

Scarlet turned on his Scroll. "If this map is right, it should be near that one coffee shop…"

After going down several streets and nearly getting lost a few times, they finally ended up in front of a gigantic store with a huge, adult dragon-sized statue behind each of the two towering windows. The one on the left sported a gold-plated halter, chain cuffs with jewels, and several tail rings. The one on the right had a rainbow saddle blanket and a bridal that had several tassels hanging from it. There were smaller dragon statues bearing accessories, and even human mannequins wearing clothes that matched the larger dragon statues. At the top of the building was a sign saying: "The Vale Boutique: Caters to the fashion-conscious Rider AND Dragon." Beneath was a smaller sign saying: "Please land dragons in the field behind the store."

"It's good that they have a spot for the dragons," Ruby remarked. "A lot of stores just make you order stuff and hope it fits once it ships."

"Yeah. Here, your dragon can actually try stuff on." Nora looked at the windows and giggled. "Okay, I definitely have to get something for Freya."

"Make sure it's not too expensive," Scarlet reminded her. "Remember, hatchlings grow quickly."

It was true. Even though it had only been two weeks, the hatchlings were definitely larger and bulkier than before. They could still be carried, but that wouldn't be so in about a month, when they'd be the size of large dogs. By November, they'd be the size of horses and would have to be moved to the juvenile barns that were in the fields near the freshman dorms. Finally, at the end of the semester, the dragonets would be settled in their permanent stalls in the elemental barns.

"Eh. When Freya outgrows it, we can pass it on to Twiggy. She's still tiny," Nora remarked.

"She's grown a little," Ruby said. "She's about the size the others were when they hatched."

They opened the door and were immediately greeted by the scent of heavily-conditioned air only partially disguising the musk of several dragons. A bunch of people were walking around the shop. Some were alone, some were carrying small hatchlings in their arms, and some were walking larger hatchlings on leashes. None of the dragons looked like elementals, except for one small one, which was being held by another Beacon student.

"Wow!" Ruby immediately gravitated toward a display of dragon treats. "Guys, look! They look like actual cookies and cakes!"

The shelves stretched toward the ceiling, bearing boxes of soft cookies in the shape of stars and frosted with red, yellow, blue, and green frosting. There were larger cupcakes in colors and flavors ranging from green apple to red beef with pink, strawberry-flavored frosting. There were tiny, brightly-colored candies that were made to fit into reinforced rubber toys. Toward the bottom of the shelves were giant cakes, obviously meant for adult dragons, that had swirling designs and personalized messages like "Happy Hatch-day!"

Nora found a table covered in collars of various sizes. Some were small enough even for Twiggy, while others could have circled two or three people. She picked up a small pink one with a pattern of white gems, looked at the price tag, and quickly put it back down again.

Scarlet was ogling some dragon clothes, including a tiny pair of goggles that he thought would look perfect on his googly-eyed little dragonet. There was also a black scarf with flame prints on the end, which would be perfect for Huo, if the material was fireproof.

Eventually, the three gravitated toward the back of the shop, where the more practical items were kept, such as bridals, saddle oil, goggles for riders, and organic dragon food. There were several baubles that could be put on bridals and saddles, of course, and these were mixed in with the oils and bits.

"What are these even for?" Ruby wondered.

"Dragon showing events, mostly," Scarlet replied. "You know the annual Remnant Dragon Festival?"

"Of course I do," Ruby replied. She religiously watched it on TV each year. Last year, when it had been in Vale, her dad had taken her and Yang. It had been the biggest event she could remember. There had been so many people, stands, and, of course, dragons.

"I usually stick with watching the flight contests and team events." She had always imagined what it would be like when she and her dragon were up in the air, showing that they were the best team in all of Remnant.

"Well, there are also showing events, beauty contests, and even costume contests," Scarlet explained. "Some are for brood dragons, while others are for elementals. Riders whose dragons are too young for most of the contests, often enter the juvenile beauty contests." He pointed toward some of the accessories. "These are often used for costume contests or parades."

Nora thought for a moment. "Hm. Where's the next one being held?"

"Mistral," Scarlet replied promptly. "That's where I'm from." He sighed. "It's a pity that I won't be there for it. It's during the beginning of the next semester, so we'll be busy at Beacon."

"Don't Riders from other schools go to the Festival?" Ruby asked.

"Sophomores and older, people who can actually _ride_ their dragons," Scarlet said. "The only freshmen you'll see are natives of whatever country the Festival is being held in."

"In that case," Ruby declared. "We'll have to work really hard so we're picked to go next time!"

They headed for the front of the store, and Ruby immediately noticed something odd: A haughty-looking woman with platinum-blonde hair was talking to one of the sales people. At her side, on a jeweled leash and collar, was a dragon the size of a Labrador. What was strange about it was that, even though it looked like a brood dragon, its eyes were bright purple instead of the normal shades of silver or gray that brood dragons were born with.

"The Pine Forest shade simply did not highlight my Celeste's eyes the way you promised it would. It did not dry to the color shown on the bottle." The lady held up a large green bottle. "It was most embarrassing when my guests arrived and saw how her paws looked. Simply dreadful. Do find me a color that won't make her look like she was traipsing through a swamp. Perhaps the royal blue I originally wanted."

The saleslady, looking very annoyed, nodded and walked away. The haughty woman turned away, pausing when she saw the three students staring. "I suppose you wish to get a closer look."

Ruby honestly did, though she wasn't thrilled at the prospect of interacting with this snobby lady. _She makes Weiss look like the most laid-back person in the world…_ She walked over, admiring the sheen of the dragon's slate-colored scales. There was a dusting of silvery freckles on its snout that reminded her of Pit. "I've never seen a brood dragon with eyes like this before," she commented.

The lady sniffed loudly. "That's because she's not a brood dragon. My Celeste is a pygmy. One of the first of her kind."

"Pygmy?" Nora asked, tilting her head. "What's that?"

In a bored voice, the woman explained: "For those of us who want to possess a dragon without worrying about their brutish size, the Schnee Dust Company has come up with a way to stunt the growth of common brood dragons by injecting hatchlings with gravity Dust when they reach a certain size. Celeste won't grow to be any bigger than she is now. Isn't that right, my girl?"

The pygmy dragon blinked dully at her owner and yawned.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, that saleslady is taking far too long." Tugging once on the leash in her hand, she led Celeste the pygmy dragon toward the claw polish shelves.

Scarlet watched them go, a frown on her face. "I'm not sure how I feel about that."

"Me neither," Ruby muttered. "At least the dragon looked healthy."

After browsing for a little while longer, they left. Ruby bought a bag of cookies for Storm and the other dragonets, Nora ended up getting a pink collar that had fake plastic gems, and Scarlet caved and got the tiny goggles.

They spent another hour at the nearby coffee shop, discussing their classes and their dragons. Then, they finally started toward Beacon.

Ruby was a little ashamed when she realized that she hadn't worried much about Storm during those past few hours, but reasoned that that was probably for the best. _And she'll love these cookies! I hope she didn't give Blake and Weiss any trouble…_

….

Yang gave Fang a pat on the back before she left, and only got a sulky snap in her general direction for her troubles. _At least I won't be bleeding when I leave the dorms for once,_ she thought. "See you guys," she called over her shoulder.

She got to the courtyard and took the opportunity to sit down on one of the benches. She closed her eyes, appreciating that she didn't have to worry about tiny teeth sinking into her arm if she let her mind wander for a few minutes. She didn't open her eyes until she heard footsteps approaching.

"Enjoying the peace and quiet?" Sun asked as he walked over. He was sporting a cheery grin on his face and a series of punctures on his arm.

"Pretty much." Yang eyed his arm. "Huo gave you a love bite on the way out, I take it."

Sun laughed. "Yeah, something like that. I've been trying to bop his nose like Port says to, but that only seems to make him madder."

"They really don't warn you about that kind of thing, do they?" Yang asked as they started toward town. "I mean, when I told Dad I wanted a fire dragon, he was mostly neutral about it."

"Maybe he didn't want to scare you." Sun looked at her. "So, why did you want a fire dragon specifically?"

Yang hesitated, not really wanting to go into detail about Raven at that moment. "Well, I thought it would be best suited for me. My mom's dragon Tempest clicked the most with Ruby. My dad's dragon Quake was cool and would listen to me, but his temperament was a bit slow. I always liked my uncle's water dragon, but he still seemed too laid back. I figured that something a bit more exciting would be more my speed, you know?" She shook her head. "Now, I'm starting to wonder if it'll be too much for me."

"Nah," Sun said, patting her shoulder. "You'll do fine. Remember what Port said. They mellow out over time. We're just gonna have to deal with a few more extra bites and scratches until that point."

"Not all of them, though," Yang reminded him. "You've seen how well-behaved Titan is."

"Well, some people are just lucky." Sun led her around a corner. "Okay, it's right over here."

The place in question was an old-fashioned noodle stall run by a strangely-familiar old man. The two sat down and looked at the menu.

Almost immediately, Yang noticed something that caused her to grin. "The Dynamite Noodle Challenge, huh?"

Sun nodded. "Yeah. If you can eat the whole thing in under ten minutes, you get it and a large ice cream for free."

"You ever try it?"

"Nah. This is actually my first time here. I had to look online to remember where the place even was."

Yang smirked. "Bet I can finish it in five. How about you?"

Sun raised an eyebrow. "You're pretty competitive."

"I mean, if you're too scared, I can just eat it myself."

Before she could say anything else, Sun waved to the old man. "Two Dynamite Challenges, please!"

A few minutes later, two large, steaming bowls of pasta were placed in front of them. The noodles themselves were orange, due to being made with chili powder, and the sauce looked red enough to be toxic. The two grinned at each other, then started to slurp the noodles down.

Almost immediately, Sun felt as if he was being repeatedly punched in the mouth. He whined, trying to chew and swallow as quickly as he could.

Yang felt tears streaming down her cheeks, but she kept going, eyes turning red in the process. When she finished, she slammed her head on the table with a groan. "Ice cream!" she rasped.

Sun whimpered, pushing his half bowl away and gulping at his water. "Why isn't this working?!"

"Water doesn't' help," Yang replied. "Milk works better." She thanked the old man as he put a bowl of ice cream in front of her. She took a few bites before nudging the bowl over to Sun.

"Thank you!" Sun ate a huge spoonful of ice cream, only to grab his skull a moment later. "Crap! Brain freeze! Why is my life nothing but pain?!"

Yang laughed. "I wonder if we should feed this to our dragons," she said jokingly. "Maybe it'd teach them to breathe fire quicker."

Sun snorted. "Nah. It would just make cleaning the litter boxes infinitely worse."

"True."

The two talked for a little while longer. Yang told Sun about growing up in a broodery, and about what it was like to ride Tempest and Quake.

"Dude, you're so lucky!" Sun commented. "You'll be way ahead of everyone else when we start actually riding."

Sun told her about growing up in Vacuo, where underground dragon cage fights were commonplace. He had gone to one as a young teen with some friends. His friends had been fascinated. He had thrown up. He didn't talk to those friends again afterward. He had been all too happy to move to Mistral, which was known for its progressive laws concerning the rights of dragons.

"Technically, Vale is behind Mistral in that respect," Sun pointed out. "It's just that Ozpin is super vocal about dragon rights and is willing to publicly go against the wishes of the CDA. Lionheart is a bit of a wetwipe in comparison. Beacon has a much better track record than Haven. That's why my friends and I chose to come here."

CDA stood for the Council of Dragon Affairs, which ultimately decided what laws to pass concerning dragon breeding, what constitutes as abuse, whether a dragon should be confiscated and put into the cage fights, etc. None of them were Riders, or even former Riders.

The two walked back to the dorms, feeling more relaxed than they had been since their dragons hatched. "Thanks for inviting me, Sun," Yang said. "I really needed a break."

"Same." Sun stretched his arms, letting out a yawn. "Still, I don't regret having Huo. He may be a little jerk, but he's mine."

Yang nodded in agreement. Despite Fang's bad temper, she still couldn't deny that he was her dragon. "I don't regret having Fang, even though he makes it difficult sometimes."

They entered the dorms. "Well, time to see if Neptune and Sage let my little badass burn the place down," Sun laughed. "See you in class, Yang."

"See yah!" Yang called, turning down the hallway leading to her room.

She opened the door to find everyone already asleep. Fang's distinctive snore rang from his divot. She paused by it, looking down at him. His paws were twitching in his sleep. Occasionally, he would growl, letting his white fangs show.

"Sleep well," Yang whispered, her eyes shining fondly. "You little shit."

 **The next chapter will show how things went with babysitting the dragonets. Just some fun shenanigans before the plot starts getting more real. Not Volume 3 real, though. Promise.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	18. Dragon-Sitting

**Hello, fellow dragon fans! I'm posting this chapter minutes after coming back from seeing "Beauty and the Beast," and holy crap! It is amazing. Like, seriously. Go watch it. It's wonderful. Emma Watson is my wife. LeFou is a freaking delight. I just…go see it!**

 **My recommendation this week is "The Neverending Story." I'm referring to the book and the first movie (only the first, mind you). The book is incredible, and one of the best self-aware looks at imagination and the love of reading that I have ever seen. The first movie is a pretty decent adaptation of the first part of the book, and holds a lot of the original spirit. There are two dragons featured: Falkor the luckdragon, who appears as an oriental dragon in the book and a canine-like creature in the movie, and a nameless evil dragon that only appears in the book. You may already be familiar with the movie, but the book is a true treasure.**

 **Enjoy!**

As soon as Ruby left the room, Storm sat up in her divot and barked sharply. She had seen her partner taking her bag. That meant she was leaving for a long time. Why hadn't she taken Storm with her? What was wrong? The wind dragon ran over to the door, scratching at it while continuing to bark.

"Storm, no." Yang hurried over and picked up the dragonet, who thrashed and whimpered in her arms. "I know, girl. Ruby will come back, okay?" She drew Storm close and tried to hold her still. Storm continued to whine, but didn't struggle. "Good girl." Yang placed the hatchling back in her bed and patted her head.

Storm looked up, her head fins drooping. The yellow-haired one was okay. She smelled a little like Ruby. Still, she wasn't Ruby. Storm wanted Ruby back! Curling her tail around her paws, she tilted her head back and started to howl.

Fang opened one eye, letting out a low growl, his tail lashing back and forth. Specter's head frills flicked irritably. Pit sat up with a groan and padded over to Storm's bed, placing his head near her paws and making a soft rumbling noise.

Thankfully, this was enough to quiet her howling. Unfortunately, she instead let out a long, ongoing whine, the tip of her tail twitching.

Weiss looked up from her homework, her ears starting to ring. "I know Ruby needs to create distance, but this is _very_ annoying…"

Blake didn't say anything, wincing at the pitch of Storm's whine. It was all she could do to keep from flattening her cat ears against her head.

Yang sat next to the divot and pet Storm, her familiar scent comforting the dragonet until she had to meet up with Sun. "Man, why can't Fang love me this much?" she wondered as she stood up.

Fang snorted loudly at the sound of his name. When Yang patted his back, he snapped at her, more out of habit than anything. At least she wasn't touching his head. He was somewhat happy with that.

Of course, as soon as the slightly-like-Ruby scent of Yang left the room, Storm started fully crying again.

Weiss closed her book, letting out an irritated sigh. "If I flunk Monday's test because of that dragon…"

Blake rolled her eyes. When she had first heard that Weiss Schnee would be attending Beacon, she had expected a snooty princess who would leave the care of her dragon mostly up to her teammates. After meeting her, she had been glad to find that this wasn't the case. However, the heiress was certainly annoying in several other ways.

 _Seriously, does she think about anything besides studying and whether or not Specter is about to bite someone?_ She had never met someone so paranoid about their dragon's behavior. Every time the ice dragon so much as twitched, Weiss would immediately swoop in and take him away from whatever setting he was in.

And her obsession with studying was already becoming legendary among the freshmen.

"Have some sympathy," Blake said aloud in a bored voice. "Storm just has a greater sense of attachment to Ruby. It's common with toddlers as well." She walked over to the divot. "Hey, girl. Come here." She held out her arms.

Storm tossed her head, not stepping forward, but continuing to howl mournfully. Fang, starting to get angry again, snapped in her direction, which only increased her distress. Pit, who was still sitting nearby, hissed a warning at the fire dragon. Specter curled up in a ball, trying to tuck his head under his arm.

Blake was about to go to the fridge to try and get some treats when her Scroll buzzed with a reminder. _Damn._ "Weiss, I need to go see Dragonmaster Ozpin with Pit. It'll only be a few minutes."

"You can't leave me here! How am I supposed to calm her down?!" Weiss asked, wincing as Storm's howling hit a slightly higher pitch.

"Just try feeding her," Blake said, shrugging helplessly. "I'll ask Ozpin if he has any ideas. I'll try to be quick, okay?" She picked up Pit and hurried out of the room, relieved to give her ears a brief break.

She felt bad leaving Weiss alone with Storm and Fang, but this was part of her deal with Ozpin. Every Saturday, she was to come to his office so that he could examine Pit for any potential abnormalities. So far, he hadn't shown any signs of being anything but a regular earth dragon. If it weren't for Ozpin's insistence that Pit wasn't ordinary, Blake would have started to wonder if she had maybe taken a regular earth egg.

Ozpin was waiting at his desk when she entered the office after a quick knock. He took one look at her and smiled gently. "Stressful day?"

Blake nodded. "Ruby's out with some friends, and her dragon hasn't stopped crying since she left. Do you know how to calm her down?"

Ozpin nodded slowly. "Clinginess in hatchlings isn't uncommon. The dragonet only notices the absence of its partner, and thinks that that absence is permanent. When Ruby returns tonight, Storm will see that is not true. In the meantime, try giving her something that smells like Ruby, such as an article of clothing."

"Okay." Blake handed Pit to Ozpin. "Any changes."

Ozpin examined Pit carefully, then shook his head. "We might not know what the other kind of Dust is until his earth powers start coming through." He patted the dragon gently. "He's very healthy and fit. You've been taking good care of him."

"Thank you." Blake hesitated before asking: "Any news on the White Fang?"

"I shared the information you gave me with the Council, omitting your name, of course. They're still debating what the correct course of action to take is." Ozpin smiled slightly. "I ended up sending someone to the location you told me about, since the Council was taking so long. Sadly, there was nothing there."

"I figured," Blake sighed. "Adam wouldn't have stayed long after I left."

"Yes. He was also very thorough in cleaning up after himself. I'll have my friend investigate the area further, though. If anything changes, I promise to let you know."

"Thank you." Blake stood up. "May I go now? I left Weiss with the other three dragonets."

"Of course." Ozpin gently scratched Pit under his chin before handing him back. "Good luck with Storm."

Blake walked briskly back to the room, but paused at the door, her cat ears twitching as she realized something. Storm wasn't howling anymore. Instead, a quiet, gentle humming could be heard behind the door. She opened it slowly and peeked in as she placed Pit on the ground.

Weiss was sitting on the floor near the dragonet beds, a sleeping Storm curled up in her lap. She was gently stroking the wind dragonet's back, eyes closed as a wordless, unfamiliar melody fell from her lips like an immaterial stream of silver. Her other hand was resting on Specter, who had also left his bed and was lying down against her leg, head in her lap near Storm. Fang was still in his bed, though his head was turned in Weiss's direction and his small ears were definitely perked up.

Pit trotted over and sat down on the floor in front of Weiss, which startled the heiress into opening her eyes and abruptly growing quiet. She looked up at Blake, cheeks flushing. "Sorry. I didn't hear the door."

Blake shook her head. "No, it's fine." She looked at Storm, who thankfully hadn't woken up at the sudden stop in Weiss's humming, then at Pit, who seemed distinctly disappointed. "I think Pit's sad that you stopped," she noted with an amused chuckle.

Weiss smiled hesitantly. "I…used to sing for my father's dragon Glacier. He always seemed to enjoy it. When Storm wouldn't stop crying, I thought it might help." She carefully moved the dragonet from her lap and onto the downy bed. Specter pawed at her leg until she picked him up.

"So, what does your father do with his dragon?" Blake couldn't help but ask. Jacques Schnee wasn't a Rider, after all. "Does he do shows with him?"

"Occasionally," Weiss said. "Though, he never does competitions. Only public appearances." She looked down at Specter, who blinked his black eyes up at her. "He always said he wanted to keep everyone else safe from Glacier."

"You're always worried about Specter lashing out. If ice dragons are so unpredictable, why did the Schnee Dust Company create them?" Blake asked, though she already knew the answer. _Vanity. They want to be better than everyone else. Or…_ she thought, looking at the loving way Weiss was gazing at Specter. _At least her father does._

"Since the Company has a monopoly on injecting elemental dragons, creating a new type that is only for Schnees gives us an edge," Weiss explained. "It puts us in a higher position than other families, and makes…"

She glanced to the side. "It makes the children of the Schnee family into more desirable marriage candidates. Father has publicly stated that the spouse of a Schnee will be granted an ice dragon egg on the day of the wedding."

Blake's lip curled with distaste. "Doesn't that make it more likely that someone will just use you to get a special dragon?"

Weiss shrugged, though her eyes held a definite stormy undertone. "If the man is from a good family that would benefit ours with a union, that's what matters."

"You don't actually plan on going through with that, do you?" Blake gasped. Weiss seemed far too willful to allow herself to be married off in such a contrived way. Then again, how much of a choice did she have in the matter? _Once she turns eighteen, though, no one can technically force her to do anything._

"Of course not!" Weiss snapped. "It's outdated and idiotic. I won't make the same mistakes my mo- that others have made." She gently stroked Specter. "Father thinks that I'll only be a Rider for a short time, long enough to show the world what ice dragons can do. Then, I'll supposedly retire to be a good wife to whoever he decides to hand the company to." She smirked. "But, seeing as I'll be an adult in a few months, and that I'll have a trained fighting dragon on my side, there really isn't much he can do to enforce that plan, is there?"

Blake found herself smiling in response to the determined fire burning in Weiss's eyes. _There's definitely more to her than I thought there was. This might be an interesting four years,_ she thought. Out loud, she said: "Seems like you have it all figured out. And, with how you've been caring for him, I wouldn't be surprised if Specter grew up to be better than Glacier."

Weiss looked at her dragon's ghost-like eyes, her own smile widening slightly. "I have no doubt that he will."

…

"OW! Owowowow! Saaaaaage!" Neptune called, fighting back tears as he tried to pry open Huo's jaws, which had just clamped down on his arm.

Before Sage could even move to stand up, Nymph had already zipped to her partner's side. She hissed at Huo and smacked his side with her large, flat tail. Huo yelped, which allowed Neptune to pull free.

"Ow… Thanks, girl," Neptune murmured, giving his dragonet a pat on the head. His heart warmed as Nymph let out a concerned chirp and started licking the bite.

Zircon, who was sitting in Sage's lap, whimpered and hid in his shirt. Nimbus was dozing at the end of the bed, letting out a series of sleepy yips.

"Easy, Zircon," Sage murmured. "No claws." He gently pulled his dragonet's claws from his chest, then placed the small paws flat on his skin. "That's it."

Zircon blinked, then started licking the tiny indents his claws had left, his tail flicking guiltily. He didn't like it when he hurt his partner, even on accident. Shivering, he moved away from Sage's chest and curled up in his lap again, trying to keep his claws to himself.

Neptune sighed as he looked at Huo, who was still hissing quietly. "I don't see how Sun can be so cheerful when he's getting mauled half the time."

"He's resilient. He can handle it," Sage said calmly. "I firmly believe that dragonets choose their best possible partners. Whatever happens, we were meant to have the ones we ended up with. That's why Huo ended up with someone as optimistic as Sun, and why Zircon chose someone patient like me."

Neptune stroked Nymph's chin, memories of his disastrous water elemental classes still fresh in his mind. "Are you sure about that? I mean, they are only babies when they choose us, after all. And what about people like Cardin?"

"Perhaps having Mudslide will make him a better person," Sage suggested.

"Or, having Cardin will make Mudslide a worse dragon," Neptune countered.

"You're not usually this pessimistic," Sage noted, his brows furrowing with concern. "Did something happen recently."

Neptune hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah. I tried doing what Glynda suggested. You know, taking Nymph to the arena after dark."

"And?"

"And I couldn't go in," Neptune growled, staring at the ground. "I put my feet in and froze up, and that caused Nymph to think something was wrong, so she froze up too and wouldn't go in the water." He looked helplessly up at Sage. "She was fine during class, but I made her scared to get in the water. I'm going to ruin my own dragon!"

Sage got up from the bed and walked over to sit on the floor next to Neptune. Zircon leaned over to sniff Nymph, his ears flicking as his sister licked his muzzle. "You won't ruin your dragon, Neptune. She has plenty of time to learn, and so do you. What if you went to the arena with one of us and left Nymph here? We could help you get used to the water so that you won't make Nymph nervous."

"That…could work." Neptune drew Nymph close and stroked her head fins in a way he knew she enjoyed. Her light, gentle purr calmed him down a little. "I just know she deserves better."

"So, become better," Sage said simply. "I know you can."

Neptune finally smiled, leaning into Sage's side. "Thanks, man."

Sage nodded. "Anytime."

They were quiet for a moment. Then, Huo decided that it was time to jump out of his bed and start chewing on one of the dressers.

"Huo, stop that!"

"Jeez. Sun should be calling you Jackass rather than Badass!"

It took the rest of the evening to convince the fire dragon that the dresser was not food. When Sun returned, Huo immediately turned his attention from the dresser to his partner's leg.

"OW! Aw, did you miss me?" Sun asked, grinning even as he winced in pain.

Scarlet came back a little while later, causing Nimbus to jump from the bed and land right on his face.

"Nimbus! Do you want to make yourself even more cross-eyed?" Scarlet asked as he cradled his wind dragonet close to his chest.

The boys continued to talk and goof off for a few more hours before going to bed around midnight. Most of them fell asleep immediately. Neptune, however, lay awake for a good while, staring at Nymph's sleeping form, wondering if he ever would be good enough to be called her partner.

…..

Ren had spent the past hour studying with an ongoing background noise of squeaks, yelps, and scrabbling claws. He looked up occasionally to make sure Freya and Ao Guang weren't breaking anything, then turned back to his notes.

Nora had gone out with Ruby and Scarlet, Jaune had taken Twiggy for a jog around the courtyard, and Pyrrha was running some extra drills at the fire arena with Titan. So, Ren had gladly volunteered to remain in the dorm room.

He smiled to himself as Guang jumped on Freya, pinning her to the ground while she struggled good-naturedly before giving up and letting him win. "You two remind me so much of me and Nora when we were growing up."

Freya sat up and chirped inquisitively. This human didn't talk too much, but she sensed that he was closer to her partner than any other human or Faunus. She liked the sound of his voice. It was very gentle and soothing.

Ao Guang shook his head and barked happily when he saw that his partner was looking at him. Was he impressed with how easily he had taken down his sister? That had to be it! His partner was so proud of him!

Ren chuckled and closed his book. "I suppose you'd like to play."

At the word "play," Guang howled with excitement and started spinning in circles. He started bouncing up and down when he saw his partner picking up the tugging rope. He loved the tugging rope!

Ren held tightly to the thick, reinforced rope toy he had bought a few days ago. Guang loved playing tug-of-war, and was usually tired by the time he was done. This made him a little more manageable overall. _I wonder if I can teach him to play fetch,_ Ren pondered as Guang tugged sharply and let out a low but playful growl.

Freya watched for a moment, then yawned and returned to her bed. She stared at the door sleepily, hoping that Nora would return soon. She liked the other human, of course, but nothing could replace the vibrant energy of her beloved partner.

Except for her brother. Her brother came very close.

 **I'll be honest: Neptune is rapidly becoming one of my favorite people in this AU. Maybe I'm just thrilled to be making him into more of a character. He's so cute when he's not flirting with Weiss!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	19. Nighttime Excursions

**My name is Solora and I am a total flake. Here is the update! Happy Dragon…Wednesday morning… (Please don't kill me.)**

"Thanks for coming down with me, Sage," Neptune said as the two teammates walked out the doors leading from the dorms and down the path to the arena. Sage was holding a half-asleep Zircon, while Neptune had elected to leave Nymph in the room.

"Glad to help," Sage assured him. "This will be a good chance to get some extra practice in for Zircon as well." He lightly shook his dragonet, who had started snoring. "No sleeping now, boy. You got a nap after class today. You can stay awake."

Zircon whined sleepily and snuggled against Sage's chest.

Neptune smiled fondly at the tiger-striped earth dragon. "We can do his training first, so he can nap while you help me out."

"Good idea."

They entered the arena for the freshman earth Riders, and Neptune looked around. "Huh. The water arena has this sort of setup."

Sage was looking at the different terrains. The rocks were a bit steeper and taller than they had been on the first day, and there was definitely more undergrowth in the tree area. Since the dragonets grew quickly, Ozpin insisted that it was important to constantly up the difficulty. It was a good idea in theory, but not in practice when one had a dragon who had refused to do even the simplest course.

Zircon sniffed the air and tensed as he realized where they were. Was his partner going to make him climb the sharp rocks again? He didn't want to climb the sharp rocks!

Sage placed Zircon on the ground and knelt down next to him. "Okay, Zircon. We're going to try this again. No one's here but me and Neptune. You don't have to hurry. Just try to complete the course."

Walking over to the first rock, he patted the top. "Forward. Climb."

Zircon whimpered, curling his tail around his legs, and tried to walk over to Sage, only to be pushed back by his partner's foot.

"No, Zircon," Sage said firmly. "Forward."

"Would it help if you climbed on the rocks?" Neptune asked.

"I'm too heavy," Sage explained. "I can walk with him through the sand and the forest, but that's it. I already asked Ozpin."

Neptune thought for a moment. "Maybe you could show him it's not scary. Pick him up and place him on each of the rocks."

"We're not supposed to help them."

"Not when you're being timed during class," Neptune noted. "But, there aren't any profs here. Maybe Zircon just needs to realize that the rocks won't hurt him."

Sage considered it, then picked Zircon up and placed him on the first rock. When the dragonet tried to jump into his arms, he put a firm hand on his back. "Easy, boy. Nothing to be scared of." He took a step back and watched.

Zircon trembled, staring over the edge of the rock he was on. What if he fell?

After a moment, Sage approached and patted the steep path leading back down the rock. "Forward."

Zircon gaped. Was his partner crazy? He couldn't go down that steep hill!

"Zircon, forward," Sage repeated, patting the rock and holding out his hand.

There was no way to jump into Sage's arms. But…his hand was there. Zircon sniffed the air, catching the comforting scent of his partner. It caused him to relax a little. His partner protected him, so maybe he wouldn't let him get hurt.

Zircon took a step and immediately started sliding down the hill. He squealed loudly, trying to dig his claws into the rock. Then, just before he could tumble to the bottom, he was stopped by a familiar, warm barrier. He whimpered and snuggled against Sage's chest.

When he was placed on a second rock, he was a little quicker to go down the hill, if only to be in his partner's arms again. By the end of the rock course, he managed to climb to the top of one all by himself.

Sage picked him up, stroking his back. "Good boy." He noticed how Zircon's sides were heaving. "I think that's enough practice for one night." He looked at Neptune. "Ready for a swimming lesson?"

Neptune's heart sank. The happiness he had felt watching Zircon immediately faded. "Nope. Let's get this over with."

The salt water pool looked even more terrifying at night. Though the arena was lit, the water looked dark and ominous, reflecting the stars and causing them to ripple.

Sage walked over and eyed the pool. "It looks like your feet will hit the bottom."

"Barely," Neptune muttered as he shrugged off his jacket.

"Why don't we start with just getting your feet wet?" Sage suggested. "Then, we'll go from there."

Neptune nodded hesitantly. "O-Okay." He removed the rest of his clothes, except for a black school-issued swimsuit with Beacon's symbol on the side. Slowly, he walked up to the pool, thankful yet again that he had decided against bringing Nymph, and sat down at the edge.

He felt Sage's hand on his shoulder, which gave him the courage to let his feet go in. A shiver went down his spine, and he was a kid wandering through Mistral's marshes again.

He had been rushing from tree to tree, splashing gleefully in the muddy water. A colorful frog had been sitting amongst a patch of reeds and, of course, Neptune had rushed to get it. Then, in one heart-stopping moment, his foot didn't hit solid ground. Instead, it went down, down, down…

"Neptune!" Sage said, squeezing his friend's shoulder when he saw how violently he was shaking.

"Huh?" Neptune's eyes opened and he was in the arena, sitting on a solid, stone floor. Only his feet were wet. Only his feet.

His face turned red with shame. "I can't do this…" he whispered, his voice cracking.

"Yes, you can," Sage said, kneeling down behind him and firmly gripping both of his shoulders. "You can, because you need to. Nymph is your dragon, and she is a water dragon. You can get over this."

Neptune shook his head. "I can't. Every time, it's like I'm in that swamp again. I feel the wetness, and I just…"

"Then, think of all the ways this _isn't_ like the swamp," Sage urged.

Neptune took a deep breath, tears prickling his eyes as he forced himself to look into the water. His feet looked like they were detached from his body, which didn't make his state of mind much better. _Okay… Think of how this isn't like the swamp… You can do this. Sage is smart. He knows what he's doing. You're smart, too. You're an intellectual, remember?_ He took another breath. _This is still salt water, with none of the bacteria found in a swamp. The water is clear. I can see the bottom. I know my feet will reach the bottom. It's cool, while the swamp was…really warm._ He shuddered at the memory.

"Easy," Sage murmured, his voice taking on the tone he used when soothing Zircon.

It was a full fifteen minutes before Neptune's heart stopped pounding quite so hard in his ears. He was still shaking, but not as much. He blinked a few times, then looked over his shoulder at Sage. "I think…I can stand in it now. Could you hold onto me?"

"Of course." Sage moved to the edge of the pool and took Neptune's hand, holding it tightly. "Go ahead. I got you."

"Okay." Neptune didn't say anything else. He knew that Sage wasn't the type of person to try the whole "I'll say I'll hold onto you, then let go so that you can learn to trust yourself blah blah bullshit" method.

 _Don't think about it,_ he told himself as he scooted closer. _Just do it._ Scrunching his eyes shut, he slid forward and, in an instant, was up to his shoulders.

Again, he was a little kid plunging toward the bottom of the bog. Water filled his mouth whenever he tried to call for help, flooded into his lungs, returned in force when he started coughing.

"Neptune," Sage said, squeezing his teammate's hand. "I think that's enough for tonight."

Neptune's eyes opened and he was standing on a stone floor, his shoulders, neck, and head dry, his hand firmly in Sage's grasp. He nodded shakily. "Okay."

Once he was dried off and had his clothes were back on, he walked over to Sage, who was holding a fast-asleep Zircon in his arms. "Thanks, man," he murmured as he fell into step with his friend.

"Anytime," Sage replied. "I'll probably need to come out here at night with Zircon a few more times. Will you want my help then?"

"Yes!" Neptune said immediately. He hated how desperate his voice sounded and how pathetic he had been in the arena just then. However, he felt okay being that way around Sage. Sage had always been the kind-hearted older brother of their group back in Mistral. Even if he lectured a lot, he never judged. Neptune knew that Sage didn't think badly of him because of his fear, and that he wouldn't mention anything to anyone.

Scarlet wouldn't tease Neptune, of course, but there was always that sense of impatience whenever the fear was brought up. Though his intentions were good, he would have definitely been the type of person to let go of Neptune's hand in order to "help" him.

And Sun…

Neptune sighed internally. The truth was that he hated looking bad in front of Sun more than anything. His best friend had been a rock in his life since they met in middle school, when Sun had pulled Neptune out of the local pool after some bullies had pushed him in. He was always understanding, and never tried to push Neptune into doing anything he wasn't comfortable with, but Neptune hated the thought of Sun babying him in any way. He wanted to actually be level with his best friend in all things: confidence, fearlessness, skill, kindness…

He blushed and quickly shut down that train of thought, glad that the darkness would hide his face until they reached the dorm.

….

Pyrrha woke up to the sound of the room's door closing. Once her eyes adjusted, she looked around to see who had left. As she had expected, Jaune's bed was empty, as well as Twiggy's divot.

She sat up, frowning as she looked at the door. For the past few days, both Jaune and Twiggy had seemed a bit sleepier than usual. Their first week of elemental lessons had gone well, but at some point during the middle of this current week, she had noticed the change.

After a moment's hesitation, she got out of bed, put a jacket on over her pajama top, slipped on her shoes, and walked out of the room.

 _He might be giving her a bath, though he does that in the morning,_ she thought. _So, the most likely place they went is either the playpen area or the courtyard._

With this in mind, she headed toward the door leading outside, and almost immediately caught sight of Jaune. He was standing in the light of one of the lamps, tossing a ball, which Twiggy was eagerly running after.

The image brought a smile to Pyrrha's face, though it also made her more confused. Why was Jaune sneaking out at night to simply play with Twiggy, especially since they seemed more tired lately?

She moved a little closer, and Jaune looked over at her, brows raised with surprise, though he quickly smiled. "Hey, Pyrrha. Couldn't sleep?"

"I heard you leave and wondered what you and Twiggy were up to," Pyrrha replied, walking over just as Twiggy returned with the ball. Tail wagging, the earth dragon trotted over to Pyrrha and dropped it at her feet before looking up expectantly. Pyrrha smiled as she picked up the ball and tossed it. "Does she prefer playing at night?"

"It's easier for her, that's for sure," Jaune replied, letting out a sigh.

Pyrrha frowned. "What does that mean?"

Jaune shook his head. "It's nothing. We can deal with it."

"Jaune," Pyrrha said, her voice taking on a firm undertone. "We're teammates. I've noticed how tired you two have been. If something's been affecting your training, and I can help…"

"Can you get Cardin expelled?" Jaune asked bitterly. He picked up the ball as Twiggy dropped it and gave it a good throw.

"Cardin?" Pyrrha's expression darkened. "What has he been doing?"

Jaune shook his head helplessly. "Every time I try to take Twiggy anywhere, whether it's the playpens or here, he and Mudslide are always there. He sets his dragon on Twiggy, and she can't fight back since Mudslide is twice her size."

"I really hate him," Pyrrha remarked, folding her arms. "But, you can't let him scare you into only playing at night. It'll only get worse. Maybe we can teach Twiggy to fight back."

"It's not that easy!" Jaune said. "I tried letting her fight Mudslide once. That's how she got that bite on her shoulder." Twiggy trotted up and he knelt beside her to point out a still-healing wound. "She's just not strong enough." He picked up the ball and threw it. "This is all I can do for now."

Pyrrha thought for a second. "What if we gave her some extra combat training?"

"I've been trying, but she's not strong or fast." Jaune shook his head. "I don't know if she'll ever be able to fight off Mudslide."

"I'm sure she'll pull through," Pyrrha said, though her words sounded empty even as she said them.

Jaune snorted. "Easy for you to say. You got the textbook-perfect dragon." He noticed her hurt expression and winced. "Sorry. I didn't mean it like that. This is just really frustrating…"

"I understand." Pyrrha touched Jaune's arm. "You've loved Twiggy since she hatched, and you want her to be happy and safe." She looked at the little dragon. "If she can't fight off Mudslide, maybe we can teach her to use her strengths to tire her out or confuse her."

Jaune tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"Well, she's smarter than the other dragonets. She knows more commands than even Storm. And since she's smaller, she can fit into places that the other dragons can't get into," Pyrrha said. "Dragons aren't machines. Eventually, Mudslide will get tired of chasing her around."

Jaune listened, nodding slowly. "That might work. I'll have to get some books on more advanced training…"

"In the meantime, why not let Titan and me be your escorts?" She patted Twiggy's head as the dragonet ran back over. "He's already very protective of her. He'll make sure Mudslide doesn't even get close."

Jaune felt his shoulders relax, and a smile came to his face. "I…wanted to ask, but I didn't want to bug you…"

"Don't worry about that," Pyrrha said. "It's not a bother at all. We all accepted that things will be more difficult having a runt on the team. And, now that we know about Ao Guang's gill deficiency, we'll have twice as much to deal with. But we're a team, and teams stick together."

"Thanks, Pyrrha," Jaune replied, feeling more at ease than he had in days. He bent down to pick up Twiggy, who had started gnawing on the rubber ball. "I guess we should get some sleep. I promised Ren I'd help him exercise Guang before class tomorrow."

Pyrrha chuckled. "If you're dealing with Guang, sleep will definitely be necessary."

 **Let's play a game called "Guess That Ship!" It's fun because I honestly had no idea when I started this fic which ships I'd be doing (except for Arkos and Team Sloth, of course). I still don't know completely, though I have a pretty good idea. Being a multishipper is fun!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Sorry again, and peace out!**


	20. Teamwork

**Hello, everyone! Happy Dragon Tuesday. Things have been busy for me between preparing for my upcoming trip, cranking away at my backlog, and starting a backlog for the fanfiction blog I hope to start soon. Busy, busy, busy.**

 **Enjoy!**

The first team lesson was held at the beginning of the freshmen's fourth week at Beacon Dragonry. The dragonets were about a yard in length (two feet without the tail) and a foot in height at the shoulder. Twiggy was less than two feet long, including the tail, and a little over six inches tall at the shoulder. When the lesson began, she was snuggled contentedly against Titan's side, mostly hidden under his large, gold-orange wing. Pit was nearly three feet long without the tail and over one and a half feet tall.

"Now that everyone has had sufficient time to bond individually with their partners, it is time to move on to bonding with the rest of your team. Teamwork is one of the most important things one can learn at Beacon," Doctor Oobleck began. "Teamwork between you and your dragon, teamwork between you and your teammates, and yes, teamwork between you and other dragons."

He zipped over to Team SSSN and picked up Zircon, who let out a squeak of terror. "Easy now, little fellow. Filling out nicely, are we?" He looked at the students. "Picture, if you will, a battle with a Grimm horde. Mister Ayana and Mister Vasilias are riding their dragons into the fray when suddenly, a flock of Nevermores comes up behind them and knocks them and their dragons to the ground. Mister Ayana ends up closest to Nymph while Mister Vasilias is by Zircon. Do you think they have time to reach their own dragons with the Grimm approaching? No!"

He placed Zircon back in Sage's lap and zoomed to the other side of the room. "Trust between a Rider and _all_ dragons must be fostered. That is what we will focus on today. I want every team to pair up and exchange dragons. Give them the basic commands you've been learning. Ask your teammate about their dragon's temperament. Get to know your teammate's dragon. Begin."

"Dibs on Weiss and Specter!" Ruby declared with a bright smile.

"Very well," Weiss murmured, snapping her fingers at Specter to get his attention and leading him to an empty part of the classroom. She watched Ruby pick up Storm and skip over. "You know, if you carried her less, she might be able to develop more of a sense of independence."

Ruby paused, frowning. "I mean…she won't be this small for much longer. I'd might as well enjoy this while I can." She set Storm down. "Okay, so from what I've seen of Specter, he's a bit of a drama king and reacts to quick, firm commands. Am I right?"

"Yes," Weiss replied, her brows going up slightly. _Hm. It seems that she's been paying attention to him beyond the fact that he's a rare, pretty dragon._ "Storm, from what I've seen, is incredibly attached to you and responds to a quieter voice. She also howls when upset."

Ruby winced. She had gone out with Scarlet and Nora again a few days ago. According to Yang, Storm had spent nearly a half hour howling. She hadn't stopped until Weiss let her sleep on one of Ruby's old pillow cases. "Sorry."

Weiss shrugged. "She's getting better about it. And you were kind enough to watch Specter when I needed to go to the library the other night." She snapped her fingers. "Specter, to Ruby." She pointed at Ruby while speaking briskly and clearly.

Specter blinked up at her, looked at her finger, then slowly padded over to where Ruby was. He liked this human. She was very energetic, but also incredibly friendly.

Ruby smiled, stroking the ice dragon's snout. "Hey there, handsome."

Storm huffed loudly, her tail lashing.

"Stop that, Storm," Ruby scolded. "He's not replacing you." She pointed at Weiss. "Okay, to Weiss."

Storm stared at Ruby's hand, but didn't move.

"Come on, Storm. To Weiss." When Storm continued to sit still, Ruby groaned. She ended up having to pick Storm up and place her in front of Weiss. "Stay."

Storm tried to follow Ruby back over to where Specter was, but was stopped when Weiss pulled her into her lap. She snorted, but didn't bite. She liked the singing one well enough. She just didn't want Ruby going anywhere.

"Good girl," Weiss said, stroking Storm's back gently. "Should we start with giving them some commands?"

"Sure." Ruby patted Specter's head, then stepped away. "Specter, forward."

Storm squeaked and started pawing at Weiss, confused as to why she wasn't the one being given commands by Ruby.

"Easy, Storm," Weiss said while watching Specter, who was currently looking at her. She resisted the urge to say something to him. _He needs to accept Ruby's authority right now._

"Specter, forward," Ruby repeated, trying to imitate Weiss's sharper voice.

Specter snapped to attention and walked over to her. He sat down, curling his tail around his front paws.

"Good boy, Specter!" Ruby gushed. "What a good boy!" She bent down to kiss his snout.

Weiss felt Storm squirming in her arms. "Storm, settle." To her surprise, the wind dragon stopped moving and looked up at her. _Hm. We might actually be getting somewhere._ "Good girl." She placed Storm on the ground near her and stood up. "Stay."

Storm winced at the sharpness in Weiss's voice. Why couldn't she go over to Ruby?

Weiss walked away and snapped her fingers. "Storm, forward."

Instead of Storm approaching, Specter turned and bounded over. Storm, meanwhile, ran over to Ruby and pawed at her leg.

"It's okay, girl," Ruby soothed. "Sorry, Weiss. She's not a fan of snapping."

"I see," Weiss murmured. "I'll try to remember that." She looked down at Specter, who blinked his black eyes up at her. "You are doing well, Specter. Good boy."

Specter let out one of his signature eerie whistles, his tail flicking cheerfully.

"Now, let's try this again." Weiss snapped her fingers. "To Ruby."

Meanwhile, in another part of the classroom, Yang saved Blake from a nasty bite. "Don't touch his head!" she warned, watching with gritted teeth as her teammate barely pulled her hand away from Fang's snapping jaws in time.

"He hates having his head touched. Took me long enough to figure it out." She let out a rueful laugh. "Now, I only have two dozen bites a day instead of the usual five."

Blake chuckled. "Well, that's an improvement. Maybe you can lower it to only one dozen." She looked down at Fang, who was sitting next to her, glaring sulkily at everything. She was a foot away from him, since he growled whenever she tried to get closer.

"Whoa, let's not get crazy!" Yang laughed. She was petting Pit, whose head was rested contentedly on her knee. "Are you comfortable, big guy?"

Pit snorted lazily up at her, though he was glaring at Fang out of the corner of his eye. If that fire dragon even thought about trying to bite Blake again, things wouldn't end well.

"He's so chill," Yang commented. "He reminds me of Quake."

Blake shook her head. "Don't be fooled. He becomes the bossiest dragon in the world when playing with Zircon and Twiggy."

"That's probably good for them, though. Dragons like to know who's the leader and who's the follower."

"True," Blake allowed. "I'm still not sure if Pit or Specter will end up being the dominant one on our team."

"Specter's a bit more reserved," Yang noted. "And he likes being overly dramatic."

Blake chuckled, thinking back to a few nights ago, when Specter had stolen Weiss's textbook and hid it in his bed when she was too busy to play with him. "That's true. Pit seems to have more of a head on his shoulders."

Yang nodded. "Yeah. Still not sure where the others stand with Fang, though. He seems to just equally hate all of them."

"I've noticed." Blake moved away from Fang a little more. "Fang, forward."

Fang responded with the most deadpanned look that could possibly adorn a reptilian face. He snorted loudly, thumped his tail on the ground, and turned up his nose.

Yang rolled her eyes. "Fang, don't be a brat."

Fang growled, shooting a sideways glare at Pit, whose head was still in Yang's lap.

"Okay, let me try." Yang got up and walked away. "Pit, forward."

Pit yawned and walked slowly over to Yang before lying down on the ground again. He shot Fang a smug look over his shoulder.

Fang let out an angry huff. Stupid earth dragon! Green eyes blazing, he stalked across the floor until he was a foot away from Blake, then sat down again, tail tip twitching with irritation.

Yang barely managed to keep from laughing out loud. "Good boy, Fang."

Fang's ear flicked, but he showed no other sign that he heard her.

Blake smiled. "I think he likes you more than he lets on."

Yang snickered. "Don't tell me that I got stuck with a tsundere dragon."

"You're lucky he doesn't understand complex phrases yet," Blake said dryly. "Otherwise, he'd probably bite you for that. I know I would."

"Ooh, feisty," Yang said with a wink.

Blake couldn't help but snicker. "Don't even go there."

"So, tell me more about Pit," Yang continued, kneeling down to pet the earth dragon again. "Are you noticing any differences in his demeanor, since you bonded to him a few days after he hatched."

"Uh, no," Blake said, thankful that she and Ozpin had rehearsed her story so many times. "Being bonded right after hatching may be the most guaranteed method, but Pit has proved that there can be cases when it can be just as strong after a few days."

"I guess he'll be showing off his powers soon," Yang noted. "Elementals usually start around two months after hatching." She grimaced as she imagined how much harder Fang would be to deal with when he actually started breathing fire. He occasionally took on a higher temperature and caused things to smoke and scorch when he bit down on them for too long (except for his satchel), but things would reach a whole new level of difficult when he could start emitting actual burning heat from his scales.

"I guess so." Blake looked at Pit, her brows furrowing a little. _But, what exactly will those powers be?_ Even Ozpin still didn't know. "Anyway, let's see if they'll respond to some different commands…"

Near one of the desks, Jaune and Pyrrha were having an incredibly easy time. Twiggy already adored Pyrrha, and Titan was tolerant of Jaune.

"Honestly, he acts neutral toward everything," Pyrrha admitted as she watched her dragon flawlessly follow another of Jaune's commands before sitting down and scratching at his ears.

"Well, dragons are like people in a lot of ways," Jaune reasoned. "Not everyone wears their hearts on their sleeves." He patted Titan's head. "I think he'd let you know if he was unhappy."

"I'm sure he would." Pyrrha smiled as Twiggy nuzzled against her hand. "She seems a lot happier than before."

"I know I am," Jaune sighed. "You and Titan have basically been her guardian angels these past few days."

Ever since Pyrrha had made her offer to escort Twiggy and Jaune around, Cardin and Mudslide's attacks had tapered into near-nonexistence. All it had taken was a swift bite to the foreleg by Titan, and Mudslide suddenly was very reluctant to be used as Cardin's attack dog. Jaune did feel a little bad, though: Cardin had a habit of yelling at Mudslide and making her cringe whenever he was mad at her, which was often.

"Give yourself a little more credit," Pyrrha urged. "No one has protected Twiggy more than you have."

"I mean, I've done my best," Jaune said. "Not sure if it's enough."

Pyrrha walked over and touched his arm. "It's been enough so far, hasn't it?"

Twiggy trotted over to Jaune and sat down on his foot, chirping happily.

This drew a smile to Jaune's face. "Yeah. I guess so."

"Oh no! The horrible beast is killing me!" Nora squealed, rolling onto her back as Ao Guang licked her face.

Ren watched passively and exchanged a look with Freya, who was sitting calmly next to him. "We have some interesting partners, don't we?" he muttered.

Freya yawned and leaned against Ren's side.

"Hey, no falling asleep. We still need to work on some commands." He walked away and turned to her. "Forward."

Freya padded over and sat down, tilting her head.

Nora sat up. "Ooh, ooh! Try a new one I've been teaching her. Tell her 'up!'"

Ren nodded. "Okay. Freya, up."

Freya chirped and slowly eased herself up until she was on her haunches. Then, she slowly lifted her front paws from the ground, standing briefly on just her hind legs before falling forward again.

"Good girl." Ren patted her head. "Guang, settle," he called over as his dragon continued wriggling in Nora's arms.

Ao Guang continued wriggling, but not quite as much.

Nora giggled. "Oh, he's fine."

"He needs to focus. We are in class, remember?" Ren said flatly.

"Fine…" Nora stuck out her tongue as she placed the water dragon on the ground and stood up. "Guang, forward."

Ao Guang gladly bounded over and pounced on her foot, causing her to make that mirthful noise again. He loved it when she made that noise. It was harder getting his partner to do it. Maybe if he licked his face more…

Ren rolled his eyes. "Half the time, I can't tell if he's actually obeying the command, or just wants to pounce."

"As long as the result is the same, who cares?" Nora asked, kneeling down to scratch Ao Guang under the chin.

"I suppose. Okay, Freya- Really?" he groaned as he turned to look at Freya, who had fallen asleep on the ground while he wasn't looking.

Neptune was on his knees, staring down at Huo, who glared a challenge back at him. "Dude, I think he's actually plotting my death."

Sun, who had just given Nymph a successful forward command, shrugged. "He plots my death every day. You can handle it for a few minutes. Just tell him to come forward."

"Okay…" Neptune slowly backed away from Huo, not taking his gaze from those narrow gray eyes. "Uh, forward."

Huo growled sharply, glad to see the human flinching in response. He honestly didn't know what his sister saw in this one. How could anyone want a partner this weak and skittish?

Sun walked over and bopped his dragon on the nose. "Come on, Huo. Be nice."

Huo snapped at Sun's hand. His partner jumped back quickly. Good. His reflexes were at least getting better.

Neptune took a deep breath and tried again. "Huo, forward."

Huo glared, but didn't growl.

Neptune knelt down and hit the ground with his palm. "Forward!"

Huo lunged toward Neptune, who yelped and jumped back. The fire dragon lashed his tail and hissed loudly.

"Sweet Dust, Huo," Sun groaned. "I don't know if Badass or Asshole is a better nickname for you at this point." He picked up his dragon, wincing as the familiar claws dug into his arm, and stepped back. "Wanna take five, dude?"

"Y-Yeah, sure," Neptune muttered, his face flushed with shame. Even Nymph trotting over and licking his face didn't help. _I still can't handle water, and I'm too much of a wimp for Sun's dragon. Does this team even need me?!_

Nymph purred softly, nuzzling Neptune's shoulder while glaring at her brother. She hated seeing her partner sad, and especially hated that Huo was the cause this time. She'd have to scold him later on.

She knew that Neptune had potential, just like her earth brother did. They just needed to get over their fears enough to realize it themselves.

"You're okay, sweetie," Scarlet cooed, holding a shaking Zircon to his chest. "There, now. How's that?"

Zircon snuggled cautiously against Scarlet's chest, trying not to grab with his claws. He liked this human just fine, but he was so small compared to Sage. It was harder to feel safe in his arms. Still, he had a kind voice, just like the blue-haired one. The one with the tail was a little energetic, but still okay. Why couldn't he be in Sage's lap again?

Sage patted Nimbus, chuckling as the googly-eyed dragon barked and rolled onto his back. "He certainly has no trouble with other people," he noted.

"Yeah. As long as you're playing with him, he's happy. Right, buddy?" Scarlet said, smiling at Nimbus.

Nimbus wiggled gleefully in response, licking Sage's hand.

"Has he been getting better at gliding?" Sage wondered.

"A little. He still crashes, but not as badly as before." Scarlet tried prying Zircon away. "Come on, sweetie. We need to do some commands, then we'll be done. Okay?"

Zircon whimpered as he was placed on the ground. He tried to run over to Sage, but stopped when he held up his hand.

"Okay, Zircon. Forward," Scarlet said.

Zircon looked at Sage, then slowly crept across the floor toward Scarlet. He had learned during his nightly sessions on that awful rock course that it was easiest to just get these things over with. He wished he knew why he was being made to do all these things, though. What was the purpose? Why couldn't he just hide in his partner's shirt all day?

"Good boy." Scarlet picked him up again. "This isn't so bad, is it?"

Sage chuckled as his dragon shot him a mournful glance. "Honestly, I'm starting to wonder how much of his behavior is genuine fear, and how much is just him being dramatic." He gently rolled Nimbus back over. "Okay. Let's see how you do…"

…

At the end of class, everyone's dragons were returned to their rightful partners. The exercise had decidedly mixed results, including Cardin nursing a pretty nasty bite from Tank.

"You did so well, Storm," Ruby praised as Team RWBY headed back toward their room. Storm was trotting next to her, obviously happy that the regular order of things had been restored.

An idea occurred to Ruby as they walked. "Hey, why don't we all go out this weekend?"

Blake tilted her head. "All of us?"

"Yeah! I was at the accessory store, and they have really nice adjustable halters for dragonets. We could walk around the dragon-friendly parts of town and get them used to being around people." Ruby's eyes were alight at the thought. "There are even outdoor food places that serve meals for dragons as well as people. Let's spoil them a bit!"

Weiss bit her lip. "I'm not sure if that's a good idea. I mean, what if our dragons react badly?"

"Yeah, some of them are a little vicious," Yang muttered, looking down at Fang as he trudged beside her.

"We'll go to an area with fewer people," Ruby said. "A lot of the areas closer to the school are used to seeing people walking around with their dragons, anyway." She started bouncing as she walked. "Come on, it'll be fun!"

Weiss clicked her tongue thoughtfully. "Well, they do need to learn how to be around non-Riders… It would probably be prudent to start acclimating them early."

Blake nodded. "As long as we get good halters, I don't see a problem."

Yang looked at each of them, then let out a sigh of defeat. "Fine, but if Fang causes me to get sued by some idiot, I'm going to be really mad."

Fang snorted loudly at the mention of his name, but decided against biting his partner's ankle. This time.

 **Character interaction is my jam! Don't worry, though. Some serious plot-plot is on the way, so stay tuned.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	21. A Peaceful Day

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! Here's a nice little chapter where nothing really significant happens. *whistles innocently***

 **For my recommendations, I've decided that I'll either recommend something, give a dragon fact, or name a favorite dragon character, just for variety (and until I get my hands on some new books). Today's shout out is to Sunny from the** _ **Wings of Fire**_ **series. She's a SandWing dragon and one of the chosen "Dragonets of Destiny," who are meant to end a war between the three heirs to the SandWing throne that has sucked in all of the other dragon kingdoms. She's the most optimistic of the group and is wholly dedicated to the prophecy and her duty to end the war. The fifth book, which is from her point of view, solidified her as my favorite of the dragonets. She's kind-hearted, but intelligent, and is often misjudged by those around her, which is something I can relate to. Also, her appearance is very close to how I'd imagine myself as a dragon.**

 **Enjoy!**

As Team RWBY walked on the path away from Beacon, each holding the end of a new leash leading to a halter that snugly held each of their dragons, they noticed an increase in activity around the airship station.

"Huh. Think we're getting an important delivery today?" Yang wondered while trying to keep a firm grip on her leash as Fang strained against his gold-colored halter. "Chill, you little shit. It's not like this is killing you."

"I guess so," Ruby said, squinting. There were several armed guards pacing around the landing strip. For a moment, she thought she saw Ozpin entering the nearby building. "Have there been more attacks lately? Is that why there are so many guards?"

"I guess so," Yang said. She and Ruby had told Weiss and Blake about the incident at the Violet Broodery. Apparently, there were similar attacks on brooderies and Dust shops happening throughout Remnant.

"Winter recently contacted me," Weiss said. "Father has apparently had to double his personal defense budget just to get Dust shipments through. There have also been many attempts to steal other bits of SDC technology."

"Sounds like someone's trying to breed their own dragon army," Yang muttered.

 _That's exactly what's happening,_ Blake thought, suppressing a shudder as she thought of the mutated hatchlings Adam was probably producing at that very moment. _Stay calm. Dragonmaster Ozpin is investigating the matter. You've done all you could._

She pushed her worries aside, instead smiling down at Pit, who had adjusted well to his new purple harness. "Let's get going."

The sun was shining and the pleasant morning aromas of fresh baked goods and coffee wafted from the open doors of various shops. Both Ruby and Storm gravitated toward a bakery that smelled very strongly of chocolate. Storm sniffed the air, tugging on her red halter and squeaking excitedly.

"Easy, girl," Ruby laughed. "Let's just see if they have a- Yes!" She spotted a sign in the shop window that had a silhouette of a dragon on it, marking it as a dragon-friendly establishment. "Guys, let's go in here!" she called over her shoulder as she entered the shop.

An older woman was tending the counter, and looked up with a smile as Ruby came in. "Welcome to Muffet's Bakery. Arachna Muffet, at your service." Her gaze went down to the dragonet. "Well, now. Isn't that a pretty little hatchling?"

"Thank you!" Ruby said with a bright smile. "Her name is Storm."

"Good name." Muffet walked over, reaching into her apron pockets. "Here you go." She handed Ruby a blue biscuit. "A blueberry tart made with dragon-safe ingredients. Give her a little treat." She peered over Ruby's shoulder. "Oh, you have your whole team with you."

Weiss and Blake had followed Ruby into the bakery. Yang was lingering a few feet away from the entrance, not wanting to risk bringing Fang in.

"Thanks," Ruby said, accepting the biscuit. "Storm, sit."

Storm immediately sat down, nose twitching eagerly as she stared at the small pastry. Ruby tossed it at her, and she snatched it out of the air gladly. It was sweeter than the apple treats she was used to, but still very good.

Seeing Storm getting a treat, both Specter and Pit started shifting their paws and chirping.

"Well, aren't I popular today?" Muffet chuckled, withdrawing three more biscuits. "And, are my eyes deceiving me, or is that a little ice dragon?"

"Yes, ma'am," Weiss said. "Specter, sit."

Specter obediently sat down, though his black eyes were fixed on the biscuits.

Muffet approached, holding out her hand. She smiled when Specter delicately took the biscuit. "Such good manners."

After feeding Pit and giving Ruby a biscuit to give to Fang, Muffet returned to the counter. "Let me know if there's anything you want."

Of course, Ruby couldn't resist buying a bag of chocolate chip cookies. Weiss ended up choosing a vanilla scone from the glass case in the front. Blake got a lavender cupcake.

"You know, it's good to see students walking through here and bonding with their dragons," Muffet said as she wrapped their orders. "Does the heart good." She handed the three their bags. "You take care, okay?"

"Thank you! We'll definitely be back!" Ruby called as the three exited the shop. "Here, Yang." She handed Yang the last biscuit while opening her cookie bag.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Ruby, isn't it a bit early to be eating chocolate?"

"Uh, no. No, it isn't," Ruby replied. "Never speak such blasphemous thoughts again." She popped a whole cookie in her mouth. "Uh…Did I use 'blasphemous' right?"

"Yes, you did. And don't talk with your mouth full!" Weiss scolded. "Honestly, you're supposed to be our leader. Show a bit of dignity."

Yang, meanwhile, knelt on the ground by Fang. "Want a snack, buddy?"

Fang sniffed curiously at the biscuit, ears flicking.

 _Hm. He seems to be in a better mood than usual. I wonder…_ Instead of tossing him the biscuit, Yang tried holding it in her palm. She waited, hardly daring to breathe.

Fang licked his teeth before darting forward, eagerly snapping up the biscuit. The fruity, sweet taste combined with the fresh air around him was almost enough to make him start purring. Almost.

Yang winced as her dragon's teeth grazed her palm, leaving a few scratches. Still, she was internally rejoicing. _He didn't bite me intentionally! He just went for the food! We're actually getting somewhere!_

The four continued through town, stopping at The Vale Boutique to let their dragons look around. Fang snatched a rubber toy in the shape of a bear from one of the shelves and refused to drop it, prompting Yang to purchase it. "Maybe it'll make him want to chomp on me less…"

Weiss eyed the claw polish, debating on whether or not she wanted some for Specter. She thought back to her lessons, which largely involved him scratching at blocks of ice. _It would probably flake off within a day._

Pit expressed a liking for a large, expensive pillow that Blake refused to buy. "You'll be too big for it in a month," she protested when he stared up at her with his large yellow eyes. "Once you stop growing so quickly, I'll get you more stuff."

Storm, of course, was chomping a cookie from one of the treat samples. Ruby giggled. "Don't eat too much. You'll get sick."

Weiss gave Ruby a dry look. "And how many of those dozen cookies are left in your bag?"

"No comment."

Eventually, they ended up at the park, which had a fenced-in area that allowed them to let their dragonets loose. Pit immediately started sniffing around, digging at the dirt with his claws. Specter padded over to a pond and became fascinated with the goldfish swimming near the surface. Fang found a sunny spot, lying down and chewing contentedly on his new toy. Storm elected to curl up at Ruby's feet and take a nap.

Blake withdrew a book from her satchel, prompting Ruby to ask what it was about. "It's about a woman who is reborn as a dragon, and ends up bonded to her grandson."

"Ooh. That sounds interesting. Can I borrow it when you're done?"

"Sure."

Weiss was keeping a careful eye on Specter, hoping that he didn't try actually catching one of the goldfish. She hated to imagine what all those small bones would do to his digestive system.

Yang was watching Fang, an amused smile on her face. Twice, another dragonet would approach and try to take his rubber toy, only to be repelled by an enraged hiss.

It was early evening as the team walked back toward Beacon, feeling a little tired but completely content with the day. A slight whoosh of air above them was their only warning before any semblance of peace was shattered.

A loud boom sounded, causing them to look up. An airship was overhead, teetering as it flew. The reason for this became clear as a burst of fire lit up the sky.

"Someone's attacking the airship!" Weiss squinted, trying to get a good look at the dragon. It was a gold-scaled beast, from what she could see, but it was too high up to tell anything else.

At that moment, a loud, deep roar sounded from the direction of Beacon. In the distance, the bulky form of an earth dragon took flight.

"It's Ragnar!" Ruby gasped as the airship dipped, starting to take a nosedive. "He's not gonna get there in time!" Without thinking, she rushed in the direction of the ship.

"Ruby, what are you doing?!" Weiss shouted. "There's nothing we can do!"

"There might be!" Ruby protested. "We can help get people out of the ship if they're injured, right?"

The members of Team RWBY glanced at each other. It was true that they were the closest people to where the ship was about to crash. Their presence could mean the difference between life and death for some of the crew members, depending on the severity of the crash.

"Okay, but we need to hold onto our dragons," Blake insisted.

The sound of the airship crashing caused all of them to wince. Storm howled, pawing at her head. Fang growled, sinking his teeth deeper into his toy. Specter hissed, tail lashing nervously. Pit just dug his claws into the ground, glaring silently.

"Hurry!" Ruby called as she rushed toward the ship. She could already smell smoke.

As they reached the crash site, they could see people struggling to get away from the ship. Others were trying to put out the fire. Still more were rummaging through a huge pile of silver boxes. Above, the sound of pained roars told the girls that Ragnar had reached the fire dragon and was doing battle with it in the air.

Ruby ran over to a man who was half-buried under a torn metal pilot's chair. She pushed at the chair, gritting her teeth. "Yang, help!"

Yang was over there in an instant, lifting the chair and tossing it easily to the side. Fang jumped in surprise, staring at the chair as it clanged to the ground.

Ruby knelt by the man. "Are you okay?"

The man opened his eyes, immediately noticing Storm, who was letting out a long, ongoing whine. "You're students… Good. He propped himself up on his elbows, revealing a silver box that was identical to the others that were piled up nearby. "Take this to Beacon. Just take it and run. They'll be here soon."

"They? Who's-?"

"Just go!" The man stood up, withdrawing a pistol. "They won't think a bunch of students would have it. Hurry!"

Weiss looked at the box. "That's from Atlas." She nodded at the others. "We should listen. Let's go!"

Team RWBY rushed from the crash site, Ruby hiding the box under her cloak, everyone dragging their distressed, confused dragonets as fast as they could go. They all had a slew of questions, but didn't have the breath to ask them. They just ran as fast as they could go.

Above them, they heard the fire dragon let out a high-pitched shriek. Behind them, they could hear the sound of a smaller craft landing.

At that moment, Ruby was reminded on the attack on the Violet Broodery. It had been almost exactly the same: A fire dragon attacked from above while men attacked from below. She held the silver box closer to her chest.

Another shriek sounded, this time directly overhead. The fire dragon was circling over them. As if in answer, running footsteps sounded from the crash site. Someone was chasing them!

"Faster!" Ruby urged, darting ahead. Her hair was blown back as the fire dragon swooped lower and breathed a stream of fire in front of her, causing her to skid to a halt. The box flew from her hands and broke open on the ground. The footsteps were almost where they were!

The team scrambled over to the box, trying to put it back together. Storm, still trying to figure out what was happening, stuck her head in to sniff at what was inside.

A click sounded as something metal and cold suddenly attached itself to her brow. The dragonet tossed her head, squeaking fearfully as a loud ringing filled her ears.

"Storm!" Ruby screamed, immediately trying to pull the metal plate from her dragon's forehead. It was stuck! All she could do was watch in horror as the metal spread across her dragon's brow, down her spine, and to the base of her tail. Storm pawed at her head for a moment before suddenly going still.

The footsteps had stopped. Several men were standing in the trees, their eyes fixed fearfully on Storm. The fire dragon had fled, pursued by Ragnar.

Storm blinked once, suddenly feeling calm. The metal was cool and soothing on her brow, and she could feel something gently pushing at her mind. She tilted her head curiously. It was like someone was trying to talk to her, to give her an order the way Ruby would. Who was it?

"Scanning." A green light embedded in the metal above Storm's brow lit up and started blinking as a flat, robotic voice spoke. "Subject: Wind dragon. Female. One month and two days old. Adjusting settings."

Storm blinked again, suddenly aware of the other humans, who had started rushing toward them. She felt an order in her mind. She needed to attack.

"Threat detected. Engaging wing gust," the voice said, though this time it sounded younger and more feminine. The light turned red as Storm stood on her hind legs and flapped her wings as hard as she could.

She was only a hatchling, but the power of the gust was definitely there, enough to cause the men to stop in their tracks.

Ruby, eyes wide, rushed over and picked up Storm. "Come on, girl! We need to go!" Whatever was happening, she knew that getting back to Beacon without being caught was more important than ever. She'd deal with whatever was happening once the danger was gone.

"Run, Ruby!" Yang yelled. "We got this." She cracked her knuckles before landing a swift punch in the stomach of one of the men as he came closer.

Fang's jaw fell open and his new toy fell to the ground. His partner could fight?!

Blake's ears flattened under her bow as she swiftly kicked another goon. "Weiss, go with Ruby!"

Weiss sniffed loudly, reaching into her bag and withdrawing a small can. "Please." She pointed it at another goon, giving him a face full of pepper spray. "You need my help."

Another goon came up behind Yang, trying to grab her arms, only to be violently tackled to the ground. "What the-AAAAARRRRRGHHHH!"

Yang spun around and almost gagged at what she saw. Fang was on top of the man who had tried attacking her, digging at his chest with razor-sharp claws, biting ruthlessly at his face, which was already a bloody mess. "Fang, settle!" she shouted. To her complete and utter shock, the dragonet obeyed immediately, bounding back to her side and growling threateningly at the other goons.

The other masked men hesitated, obviously not prepared to face dragons head-on, even if they were small ones. After a moment, they turned and ran back toward the crash site.

Yang smirked. "Nailed it." She picked up the man Fang had incapacitated, holding him by the shirt collar. "You guys follow Ruby. I think the police would be happy to question this guy." She grinned down at Fang. "Good boy!"

Fang blinked up at her, his tail wagging excitedly. He barely remembered to grab his toy before following his partner, bloodstained claws cheerfully clacking against the pavement.

Ruby, meanwhile, was rushing up the hill leading to Beacon, holding her dragonet close, panting a little with the exertion.

"Analyzing threat."

Storm blinked, realizing that the voice in her head wanted to attack. She quickly tried reasoning with it. Ruby was good! She was the best! She didn't deserve to be hurt!

"Mind waves read. Dragon Rider partner recognized. First priority: protect Rider."

Tears streamed down Ruby's face as she ran. What was going on? What was this thing on her dragon's head? What if it was hurting her?

She practically collapsed in the Beacon courtyard. "Help!" she called. "Some metal thing is attached to my dragon!"

Almost immediately, Glynda Goodwitch was kneeling in front of her. "Miss Rose, what-?" Her eyes widened when she saw Storm. "Quickly. Into the broodery." She took Ruby by the shoulder, half-dragging her into the stable for the brood dragons.

The comforting scent of hay and dragons enveloped them as they kneeled on the ground. Ruby stared up at Glynda, eyes wide. "Professor, what happened to Storm? What is this thing?"

Glynda stared down at Storm, brows furrowed, mouth in a thin line. "Something you should not have been involved with," she muttered.

Storm looked around, sniffing the air. They were safe.

"Threat level: zero," the robotic voice said. The light turned from red to green. "Combat settings now offline."

"What are you?!" Ruby gasped. "Get off of Storm!"

Storm turned to look at her, and the green light blinked. "Salutations," the voice said. "I am the Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant, primary draconic model, beta form. How may I be of assistance?"

 **I have really been looking forward to posting this chapter! It took me forever to figure out how I'd fit our favorite little robo-girl into this series, since Aura isn't a thing in this AU and there wouldn't be much reason to create a sentient android. Then, my mind went "CYBORG DRAGON HOLY CRAP!" I love my mind sometimes.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	22. The Boundaries of Science

**Hot damn, I hit a review high last week! I should write Penny into my fics more often!**

 **This week's dragon spotlight goes to Haku from Hayao Miyazaki's** _ **Spirited Away**_ **. Haku is a young man who serves Yubaba, the ruler of a bathhouse for the spirit world. His dragon form is a gorgeous Eastern-style dragon with shimmering white scales, feline features, and a blue-green mane. I absolutely love Haku's character and design, as well as his relationship with Chihiro, the main character of the film. If you haven't seen** _ **Spirited Away,**_ **stop what you're doing and see it. It's a true masterpiece, along with all of Miyazaki's works. My top three are** _ **The Wind Rises, Princess Mononoke,**_ **and** _ **Spirited Away.**_ **Fun fact: In the English version, Haku is voiced by Jason Marsden, who also voiced Max Goof and Kovu, among many other roles.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Ruby stared blankly at Storm and at the blinking green light on her brow. Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant? What did that even mean? What had she led her team into? What was happening to her dragon?

Thankfully, Glynda seemed to know exactly what was going on. "Command: detach," she said in a calm voice.

The light turned yellow. "Negative. Awaiting Rider command."

Ruby blinked. "Uh, command: detach," she said, deciding it was best to just imitate Glynda for now. To her relief, the light went out, the metal withdrew until only the diamond-shaped forehead plate remained, and the plate itself loosened and fell from Storm's head with a clatter.

Immediately, Ruby drew her dragon close, kissing her and sobbing. "Thank goodness! Are you okay, Storm? That must have been so scary!"

Storm shook herself, gladly snuggling against her partner. Though, she was confused. Where was the other nice voice?

Glynda let out a sigh of relief, picking up the metal plate. "Miss Rose, follow me. I think you need to see Dragonmaster Ozpin immediately."

Ruby stood up. "But, what about Storm? Is she-?"

"The device likely didn't damage her," Glynda said. "However, we'll have to show her to Ozpin just to make sure. And there are several things that need to be explained since you've already seen this much." She paused. "Has anyone else seen this device?"

"My teammates." Ruby's eyes widened. "They're still fighting those men by the crash site!"

"Don't worry. We've sent people down there," Glynda said briskly. "We just need to let them know that the implant is safe." She took out her Scroll, squinting at the sky. The fire had faded, and there wasn't as much noise coming from the park. She still waited until she could clearly see Ragnar returning before she made the call, moving away from Ruby as she did so.

"Sir, we have a problem. Yes. No, the device is here. A student. Yes, it did activate. Miss Ruby Rose. The rest of her team saw. Yes. Very well." She lowered her Scroll. "Follow me."

Ruby nodded, eyes wide as she followed Glynda toward the main campus. She held Storm tightly in her arms, ignoring how much her muscles were starting to ache. After Storm's next growth spurt, she become completely impossible to carry. _She seems weirdly calm right now,_ Ruby thought. _Omigosh, what if that thing scrambled her brains?! No, no… Professor Goodwitch says she's probably fine… But what if she's not?!_

These thoughts remained at the front of her mind, nearly driving her crazy as she was led up to Ozpin's office and seated in one of the large armchairs in front of the giant oak desk. She stroked Storm's brow, relieved when the dragonet curled up in a familiar position, head resting on her chest.

A few minutes later, the door opened again and Ozpin entered, followed closely by Yang, Weiss, Blake, and the other dragonets. He beckoned for them to sit down before kneeling in front of each dragon, carefully examining them.

When he got to Storm, he looked at her eyes and snapped his fingers in front of her face. When she blinked immediately, he nodded and stood up. "Well, it seems that you are all unharmed. That's a relief." He approached Glynda and took the silver box, now closed, and placed it on his desk. "I'm sure you have questions, but I'll have to ask you to wait until I've finished talking."

Ruby had to bite her lip to keep from asking about the metal plate. _He'll get to that. Storm is fine, so you can wait._ She hugged her dragon close, drawing comfort from the low purr she heard and felt in response.

Ozpin sat down on the edge of his desk, next to the box and closer to the girls than he would have been if he had sat down in his chair. He folded his hands and sighed. "What I'm about to tell you must be kept secret, at least until this year's Dragon Festival. The tech you have seen isn't supposed to be unveiled until then, mainly because I was given the task of testing it. Understand?"

The girls nodded. Weiss was staring intently at the silver box. Unable to keep from speaking, she asked: "Is my father involved?"

"No, Miss Schnee. This particular project is a commission from the Council, headed by General James Ironwood. You probably are familiar with him." He opened the box and withdrew the plate. "As you saw, this implant attached itself to Storm and commanded her. I'll ask you in detail about what happened once I'm done explaining."

Ozpin took another breath before starting to explain, his voice taking on the tone it had when he was teaching a class. "The Council has been talking about new ways to combat Grimm, ways that will minimalize the risk of human lives."

Blake noticed that he didn't mention Faunus lives. She had a feeling that that wasn't a mistake.

"Therefore, they asked General Ironwood and one of Atlas's lead scientists, Doctor Gepetto, to create a device that will allow dragons to be trained and sent into battle without Riders. What they wanted was an implant that would allow for direct control over a dragon's mind from a distance."

Ruby let out a disgusted gasp, drawing Storm closer. _That's how she was able to use her wing gust like that. Mind control!_

"However," Ozpin continued. "Neither Ironwood nor Gepetto liked that idea. Miss Schnee, you probably are aware of this. Before Ironwood became general of Atlas's ground army, he was part of the Flight Squad. However, his dragon was killed in a battle with some Nevermores a few years ago. He has no wish to make dragons into mental slaves. As for Doctor Gepetto, his niece is a Rider in the Flight Squad. Therefore, they made the device, but made it slightly different from what the Council wanted."

Ozpin looked toward Storm. "If the implant worked the way it was meant to, it should have molded itself to your dragon's personality, taking mental cues and reading its surroundings in order to decide what to do. It can feed advice directly into the dragon's brain, and even trigger certain elemental powers when necessary. However, it doesn't exert direct control. There was no one on the other end of that device, so Storm's actions were her own. She was simply guided." He folded his hands. "At least, that's the ideal. Since I'm currently one of the most well-known advocates for dragon rights, and am a good distance away from Atlas, Ironwood saw fit to send the device to me for testing. Ragnar agreed to it as well."

Ruby was unable to hold back. "But why have the implant at all? Dragons can already fight. If you don't want it to control them like the Council does, why even make it?"

Ozpin smiled. "Well Miss Rose, this could be an opportunity to prove without a doubt that dragons deserve more rights than they currently have, perhaps that they deserve as many as people." He tapped the metal plate. "Doctor Gepetto has detailed notes proving that this device will be able to draw right from a dragon's mind. Maybe it could be used to put a dragon's thoughts into words beyond the limited vocabulary they have now. The plating could be upgraded to provide flexible armor in battle. It could help a dragon react quickly to a situation that its Rider may not notice in time. Perhaps, it could help a dragon cope if its Rider dies."

He spread his hands. "The possibilities are endless. Besides, if Ironwood had refused to head the project, the Council simply would have found a yes-man who would do exactly as they asked. This way, we at least have a chance to make things better for our partners. I'm sure that's what you all want."

The girls looked at each other, their expressions still plagued with confusion and worry.

"Now then," Ozpin continued. "I'll have to ask you exactly what happened when the device attached itself to Storm."

Ruby quickly recounted the battle, answering Ozpin's questions. She kept one hand on Storm's back, half wondering if she would be asked to attach the plate to her brow again.

Thankfully, Ozpin didn't ask her to do that, and dismissed the team minutes later.

Blake hesitated at the door, glancing over her shoulder at the Dragonmaster. He just barely shook his head and mouthed "Later." She nodded and followed her team without uttering a word.

…..

It was close to midnight by the time Team RWBY's dragons were cleaned and fed. Despite the late hour, no one was tired. They just sat on the floor, talking quietly as their dragons sat nearby.

"I don't like it," Ruby said flatly, scratching Storm under the chin. "Even if it's not mind control, it's still doing something to the dragon. Storm shouldn't have been able to use her wing gust so early."

"He did say that the device can enhance certain abilities," Weiss muttered, looking down at Specter. "And, aren't all of our dragons experiments? Elementals were originally made as tools to fight Grimm. No one's complaining about that."

"Yeah, but it's different from using them as slaves to fight!" Ruby protested. "I mean, Riders risk their lives along with their dragons."

"But they don't ask to be born as elementals," Blake muttered. "They were made to bond to people and made to fight Grimm. They don't really have much choice at all, do they?" She rested a hand on Pit's brow, eyes narrow as she spoke. "I mean, technically, these guys shouldn't exist as they are. They should be hatching naturally in the mountains and living wild. It's people who turned them into weapons. Maybe this is the natural next step."

 _What if that's what Adam wants?_ she wondered. She hadn't recognized any White Fang members during the attack on the ship, but that didn't mean they weren't involved somehow.

Yang's stomach twisted as she looked at Fang, who was curled up next to her, his wing touching her leg. He still growled occasionally, but he wasn't snapping at her anymore. Was that because he was starting to genuinely respect her, or because his genetic altering was forcing him to develop a closer bond with her? If he had been born as a regular dragon, would he even want to be near her? Would he have a different overall personality?

Ruby noticed the dark mood descending on her teammates and cleared her throat loudly. "Well, it doesn't matter. Elemental dragons are being made, like it or not. They've helped us fight Grimm for years, so they're obviously good for our society. We just need to work to make things better for them and keep training our own dragons." She hugged Storm. "I mean, who cares if they're genetically altered? They still love us, and we love them. Isn't that enough?"

Weiss felt a smile coming to her face. As if in response to Ruby's words, Specter licked her hand. "It's enough for me." She stroked her dragonet's brow. "As for that device, since we know about it, it's our responsibility to be aware. When it's unveiled, we'll see what happens with it and whether or not we should work to get it banned or improved or whatever else needs to be done."

Yang grinned. "Sounds good to me." She patted Fang's back. "That was some fight though, huh? If our dragons could fight off those jerks at a month old, can you imagine how strong they'll be in a year? We'll be unstoppable!"

There was a pause. "I guess you could say that we're a pretty _hot_ team, huh Fang?"

Ruby groaned loudly. "Yang, don't start."

"Start what?" Blake asked.

"I mean," Yang continued. "With saving that device, we really proved our _metal_ out there."

"Is she serious?" Weiss muttered.

"Unfortunately," Ruby said, covering her ears.

"We weren't too bad, considering the fact that we were just _winging it_." A sudden barrage of pillows put a swift end to what likely would have been a very painful, multiple-hour attempt at comedy.

The team talked for a little while longer before finally putting their dragons to bed and going to sleep. Blake, however, stayed awake, cat ears twitching as she listened to her teammates' breathing. Once she was sure they were all asleep, she stood up and quietly exited the dorm.

Ozpin was still in his office, and didn't seem at all surprised to see her. "The White Fang wasn't involved with the attack on the ship," he said as she walked in. "However, there were several Dust robberies around the same time, and Faunus wearing Grimm masks were spotted."

"Do you think they're working with whoever these people are?" Blake asked.

Ozpin nodded. "I don't know what they want with the device, but I know they wanted it. The men who attacked the ship were going through the silver boxes before they fled. The one Miss Xiao Long gave to the police hasn't answered any questions so far. The rest managed to escape under the fire dragon's smokescreen."

"Do you have any idea what these people want, sir?"

Ozpin folded his hands and sighed. "I'm not sure. All I can say is that they're planning for something. This isn't just a random string of attacks to supplement a black market hatchery. Something bigger is going on, and we won't be able to combat these people until we figure it out. That's all I can tell you right now." He smiled gently. "You should get some rest, Miss Belladonna. You and your team deserve it."

Blake returned to the room, her head reeling. She glanced toward the dragons as she sat on her bed, wondering if, between the device and Pit's still-to-be-unveiled powers, she could handle any more surprises that could be thrown her way.

 **Now, we're really getting into some of the main themes of this story. I hope this answers most of the questions people have been having. No, Storm and Penny aren't going to be fused. Rather, Storm and Ruby will slowly influence Penny's development from a simple program to a sentient, thinking being over time. You'll be seeing more of her later on.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	23. JNPR vs CRDL

**Hey, everyone! I'm coming at you from the coast of North Carolina this week. Worry not, though! Even family vacations and the lure of fresh seafood won't keep me from updating for you guys.**

 **This week's dragon spotlight is a bit of a blast from the past: Cassie from** _ **Dragon Tales**_ **. If you're in my generation and watched PBS Kids, I guarantee that you've seen** _ **Dragon Tales**_ **at some point. It was a childhood staple along with** _ **Arthur, Cyber Chase,**_ **and** _ **Sesame Street.**_ **Cassie was always my favorite, largely because she was pink (which was my favorite color when I was little). Looking back, I realize that she was incredibly relatable: intelligent, but self-conscious. She would sometimes refrain from saying anything due to a fear that she was wrong or that people wouldn't listen to her. When she became sad, she would shrink to a small size. I remember both her and the show fondly. I drove my brothers crazy with how often I'd watch it, actually.**

 **This week sees a return to our friends in Team JNPR. Enjoy!**

"Do you think they could operate on him?" Ren wondered as he watched Ao Guang pounce on Twiggy and playfully bite at her foreleg.

"On his gills, you mean?" Pyrrha asked. Titan was lying next to her, blue-white eyes fixed on his brother and sister, ready to leap in if Guang started being too rough.

"Yes. We had another swimming lesson today. He's having trouble keeping up." Ren thought back to the lesson, which had involved racing underwater. Since Guang had needed to surface regularly to breathe, he had lost every contest. Barracuda had even bitten him to add insult to injury.

Nora looked at her best friend's frown and touched his shoulder. "Hey. No one's going to let Guang be culled, okay? No dragons get culled at Beacon, right?"

"It's happened before," Jaune muttered. "A few years ago, I read about a wind dragon with a stunted wing. Ozpin kept it under wraps until graduation, but the Council stepped in once the Rider was out of school and had the dragon culled."

Noticing Ren's stricken expression, he quickly added: "But, we won't let that happen. We'll fight anyone who tries to take Guang away. Right, guys?"

"Yeah!" Nora said, grinning eagerly. "And we can be rogue Riders, roughing it in the wild, and-"

"Easy, now," Pyrrha chuckled. "We're not even done with one semester yet. Let's at least wait for our dragons to grow up before we talk about becoming rogues." She turned back to Ren. "As for your question, I'm not sure. While there are healers trained in helping dragons, they're mostly taught to heal certain battle wounds. I've never heard of a dragon being operated on due to a deformity."

Jaune snorted. "That's because the Council doesn't think they're worth the time or money. Why waste effort on a water dragon with no gills when they could just breed a shiny new one? I mean, remember when Twiggy hatched? You guys were talking about how everything would be fine. I'd get a new dragon. I could play with your dragons while I waited."

The others looked guiltily at each other. Pyrrha frowned. "I guess a certain lack of concern exists even in people who genuinely care about dragons." She touched Titan's back. "I know that I wouldn't say anything like that now."

"I guess Riders are the only ones who _really_ understand," Nora noted. "I mean, I notice a lot more things and get angry a lot easier when I see dragon-related stuff on the news now. I didn't used to, at least not as much."

Deciding to change the subject, Pyrrha asked: "So, how is your one classmate doing? The one who's scared of water?"

"Neptune. He's…showing some improvement," Ren muttered. By "some improvement," he meant that Neptune didn't flinch as violently when he got splashed. The poor boy shook like a leaf whenever he had to enter the water. "Russel's taunting isn't helping."

"That whole team just needs to go away!" Nora snapped. "Sky was making fun of poor Scarlet just yesterday. Kept snapping his fingers in Nimbus's face. I thought Scarlet was going to punch him."

"Why didn't he?" Ren wondered.

"Tornado was already agitated, and Scarlet figured he would bite Nimbus."

Pyrrha shook her head. "They should never have been given dragons."

"They passed the combat test, and their rich parents paid for their tuition," Ren sighed. "So, that's that. I heard that Ozpin wants to get rid of the combat test and make all new students go through the sight test. Of course, the Council thinks it's immoral to let 'a bunch of animals' decide who becomes a Rider and who doesn't. They've been trying to get rid of the sight test completely."

"Good thing they didn't, or I wouldn't be here!" Jaune exclaimed.

"And neither would Twiggy," Pyrrha added. "Most likely."

The group continued to talk, Twiggy and Guang continuing to play in the grass while Titan kept watch and Freya slept. They were so content, they almost didn't react when another dragon jumped into the fray. Only Titan's immediate growl alerted them before the playful scuffle turned bloody.

It wasn't Mudslide, but the blue-gray Barracuda who jumped in, swiping at Ao Guang's chest while hissing. Guang's large tail lashed and he warbled nervously, suddenly favoring the leg that had gotten bitten by the other water dragon only hours before.

Twiggy immediately started shaking, ducking her head and whining. She wanted to run back to Jaune, but couldn't bring herself to abandon her brother. So, she just sat down and let out a distressed whimper.

This whimper was quickly cut off as the familiar form of Mudslide barreled into her from the side, followed closely by the green Tornado.

At this point, the members of Team JNPR were on their feet and trying to pull their dragons out of the sudden scuffle. Titan was quick to jump on Mudslide, pinning the earth dragon down and biting down on her thick neck.

A few feet away, the members of Team CRDL were talking loudly and laughing it up.

"Look at that! Only the fire dragon is worth anything."

Sky snorted. "Yeah, the wind one is still napping."

Nora, eyes blazing, didn't hesitate to give Tornado a good kick, which allowed Twiggy to scramble out from under her and rush into Jaune's arms. "Her name is Freya! You should know, since you take lessons with us. But I guess you just don't listen, or you wouldn't be pathetic enough to send your dragonets to- OW!" She was cut off suddenly when Tornado, angry at being kicked, jumped forward and sank his fangs into her ankle.

Unlike the relatively harmless half-bites that dragonets often gave their Riders, this was a full-on attack. Nora's vision went white as the dragonet's teeth hit bone, and she fell to the ground.

In a haze of pain, she heard a shriek, saw a pastel-colored form zipping past her, and felt the teeth suddenly withdraw. She clutched her ankle, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Ren was at her side immediately. "Easy, Nora. You're okay." He tore a strip of cloth from his shirt and hurriedly started wrapping her ankle. It was bleeding a fair amount, but it didn't look like Tornado had hit anything important. He desperately wanted to go over to Sky Lark and beat him into the ground, but held himself back. Nora needed him, and he didn't want to further aggravate any of the dragons. He felt Guang pressing against his side and let out a sigh of relief.

Titan, meanwhile, had locked his jaws over Mudslide's neck and was refusing to let go. His eyes blazed like white fire as the dragonet beneath him thrashed and gurgled.

"Titan, that's enough!" Pyrrha shouted. She knew that this wasn't Mudslide's fault. It was Cardin. His dragon didn't deserve to suffer for his cruelty. To her horror, Titan only bit down harder. "Titan!"

Jaune's head was reeling. Everything was chaos. Nora was on the ground injured, Freya and Tornado were in a heated fight, Titan was trying to kill Mudslide, Twiggy was howling in distress, and through it all, Team CRDL was just standing there! A crowd was starting to gather, but of course no one was going to risk themselves or their dragons solving this dispute. He could see Doctor Oobleck rushing toward the scene, blowing into a whistle as he did so.

 _That's it._ Taking a deep breath, Jaune placed Twiggy on the ground. "Twiggy, stay," he murmured. Ignoring his dragonet's squeak of protest, he strode across the grass, his right hand forming into a tight fist.

Russel, Dove, and Sky took one look at his face and stepped back, giving him a clear path to his target. Cardin, who was too preoccupied with yelling at Mudslide to get up, didn't even have a chance to blink before Jaune's fist smashed into his face, throwing him to the ground.

Mudslide froze, trying to turn her head toward her partner, letting out choked cries of distress. Titan paused, surprised at the sudden thump on the ground. Even Tornado and Freya paused, sensing a shift in the atmosphere around them.

Pyrrha took this opportunity to pull her dragon off of Mudslide, barely wincing when Titan bit her hand for the first time. Her eyes were on Jaune.

Jaune glared down at Cardin, who was gaping up at him. He then turned his gaze on the rest of Team CRDL. Russel and Sky looked unsure of what to do. Dove was hanging back a few feet away. Jaune noticed for the first time that the bronze fire dragon Tank had never joined the fight. Instead, he was curled up behind Dove, trembling in a way that reminded him of Twiggy or Zircon.

"You listen to me," Jaune growled. "You are going to stop messing with our dragons, and everyone else's dragons. You're going to stop treating your dragons like your own personal attack dogs. You are going to _leave right now._ " Shooting Cardin a final disgusted look, he turned and started to walk back toward Twiggy. He noticed that Doctor Oobleck's dragon Gust had arrived while he was yelling at Cardin, and was now firmly shepherding Tornado, Mudslide, and Barracuda away from the JNPR dragons.

Twiggy, meanwhile, was staring up at him with wide silver eyes. She bounded forward and rubbed her head against his leg, crooning softly.

Behind Jaune, Cardin was struggling to his feet. He blinked dumbly, then started forward, a murderous gleam coming to his eyes. However, he was swiftly stopped by a kick to the groin followed by a punch in the jaw that sent him sprawling yet again. This time, a weight settled on him, keeping him from getting up.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Pyrrha murmured, her voice calm but her eyes blazing. "I stopped Titan from attacking Mudslide, but I'm perfectly willing to face the consequences for setting him on _you_."

Cardin could only groan in reply.

"I'm glad you see things my way." Pyrrha stood, turning away with a satisfied smile. She noticed Jaune gaping at her and shrugged. "I couldn't let you have all the fun, could I?"

Doctor Oobleck cleared his throat, looking at the crowd of people. "Move along! Nothing to see here. Out, out!" He clapped his hands, sending the students off before kneeling next to Nora. "Now, let me look at that. Quite a nasty bite, but nothing serious. I'll have that cleaned and wrapped up in a few minutes."

He stood up, glaring in the direction of Team CRDL. "As for you, I've had just about enough." He zipped over. "I had hoped that being responsible for these lovely dragons would somehow cure you of your utter stupidity, but that clearly isn't the case. I want the three of you to take your dragons to the infirmary, then report to Ozpin's office! Don't think of trying to run. I'm going to call him to make sure he makes time for you."

Glaring sullenly, Cardin, Russel, and Sky trudged toward Beacon. Russel and Sky waited for their dragons to catch up while Cardin didn't even look over his shoulder, leaving Mudslide to blink a few times before rushing after him.

Dove hadn't moved, his squinty eyes unreadable as he waited for Doctor Oobleck to tell him what to do.

The professor looked at Dove, then at the shaking Tank, and let out a sigh. "Mister Bronzewing, you may go back to your room. I will just say this to you: Evil only prospers when good men do nothing. Think about that."

Dove gave Doctor Oobleck an uncertain look before walking off, muttering something to his dragon as he went down the path.

Doctor Oobleck turned toward Team JNPR and clapped his hands together. "Okay, who wants bandages?"

A few minutes later, they were in one of the many hospices scattered around campus. No one in JNPR wanted to go to the main infirmary and see Cardin or his cronies again. Doctor Oobleck was silent as he cleaned and wrapped Nora's ankle and tended to the dragonets. Thankfully, the worst they had were a few scratches and bites.

"Sir, can I ask a question?" Jaune spoke up.

"You just did, but feel free to ask another," Doctor Oobleck replied.

"Why are people like Cardin allowed to do that? They've been giving other Riders and dragons a hard time since day one!"

Doctor Oobleck let out a sigh. "I agree wholeheartedly with you, Mister Arc. There are some people who should never have been given dragon eggs. However, the law says that they are allowed to study here, since they passed the combat test and paid their tuition."

"Can't they be disciplined, though?" Pyrrha asked.

"Yes, but some people don't respond to discipline," Doctor Oobleck explained. "Trust me, they have had several detentions these first few weeks, and many lectures. They just refuse to listen. We can't expel them, as that would cause their dragonets to be culled."

Jaune hugged Twiggy against his chest, feeling a bitter taste in his mouth at the unfairness of it all.

"I know this is difficult," Doctor Oobleck said. "And we will do everything in our power to sway Team CRDL toward the right path for their sakes, their dragons' sakes, and everyone else's. In the meantime, I hope that you can continue to be strong, like you were today." His eyes glittered under his glasses. "A bit of retaliation will never be punished by the likes of me, I can assure you."

He gave Nora's ankle another look. "You should be fine, but try not to go for any long walks. And don't run on it. Or play hopscotch, obviously. Do kids even play hopscotch anymore…? Anyway, why don't you go to your dorms and rest? And don't forget that there's a test on water dragon anatomy tomorrow!"

Minutes later, Team JNPR was settling in their dorm, trying to calm their dragons down. Freya was still agitated and kept licking at Nora's bandaged ankle. Ao Guang, suddenly sapped of his playfulness, was curled meekly in Ren's lap. Titan was pacing back and forth in front of the door, as if expecting Mudslide to come crashing through. Twiggy was snuggled against Jaune's chest, purring loudly.

Pyrrha sighed, running a disinfectant wipe over her bitten hand. It looked like Titan wasn't a textbook-perfect dragonet. He had some fire dragon anger in him after all. He just needed to be heavily provoked. _Hopefully, that won't happen often…_ she thought, remembering Mudslide's distressed, gargling cries.

Jaune glanced at Pyrrha. "That was pretty awesome how you handled Cardin."

Pyrrha's face flushed and she shrugged. "I was simply adding to what you already did. Did you see his face when you hit him? He couldn't believe it."

Jaune grinned. "Yeah. Too bad I didn't have a camera." He looked down at Twiggy. "So, do you think this is the last time he'll be bugging us?"

"Probably not," Ren said bluntly, rubbing Nora's shoulder with the hand he wasn't using to stroke Guang. "Still, I doubt he'll be so eager in the future."

Team JNPR remained in their room that night, talking and studying. The dragonets eventually calmed down enough to go to sleep. There was something new in the air as the four humans went about their evening routines, a realization that made all of the annoyances and injuries of the day fade into irrelevance. Each team member now knew without a doubt that they had three Riders and four loyal dragons who would always be on their side.

Whatever else came at them, whether it was Team CRDL, the Council, or a pack of Grimm, they wouldn't have to face it alone.

 **Hopefully, this chapter cleared up why CRDL has been able to get away with being such buttmunches. Unlike the usual circumstances, when the teachers and principal just ignore the problem unless they need to suspend the victim for fighting back, Beacon's teachers do want to help, but can only do so much. If you have someone who won't respond to punishment, what can you really do? And if you're fuming at how easily a dragon can be culled in this world, good! Hold onto that anger. You're not the only one who's going to be feeling it as this story goes on.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	24. A Desperate Proposal

**So, Fanfiction did a weird thing where the chapter posted, but it didn't show on my email, the site, or anything else. I deleted it and re-uploaded it, so hopefully you guys actually got a notification this time.**

 **Anyway, today's dragon spotlight is Ruth from** _ **Dragonriders of Pern**_ **by Anne McCaffrey. On Pern, there are traditionally five colors of dragons: gold, bronze, brown, blue, and green. Each color has a different rank and purpose (the golds are the breeding queens, the bronzes are their mates, the greens are there for speed, etc.) Ruth is the one and only white dragon, born a runt from an egg that wasn't supposed to hatch. I don't want to tell you too much, since the story of him and Jaxom is one of my favorite arcs in the series. You should just read the books for yourself. Seriously. They're the best dragon books you'll find. Another fun thing to note is that Ruth is a canonically asexual character. He's the only dragon who has no desire to join a mating flight.**

 **Anyway, sorry for the tech crap and enjoy!**

Autumn was arriving in Vale, apparent in the changing leaves and cooling air. It was also obvious when one looked at the dragonets, who were now large enough for toddlers to ride comfortably.

"You hear that?" Sun asked, leaning against a tree and letting out a sigh. "That's the sound of a good day. No morons picking fights, no dragons trying to kill each other…"

As if on cue, there was a loud squawk followed by a low hiss.

Sun groaned. "Huo, can you play nice for like five minutes?" He sat up to see his dragon squaring off with Fang for what was probably the tenth time that day.

Sage watched the two dragons circle each other, shaking his head. Zircon was curled up around his feet, trying to move his head up to at least hide his face in his partner's shirt. "I'm honestly impressed that the courtyard always looks good, despite what the dragonets do to it. Have you noticed that?"

"Well, they need to make the place look presentable," Weiss noted. "It is a prestigious school, after all."

"Yes, but how do they do it?" Sage wondered.

"Well, there are some fertilizers that are infused with trace amounts of earth Dust," Weiss explained. "It can speed the growth of some plants. For grasses, I suppose it allows it to grow overnight." She stroked Specter's head, smiling fondly as she looked at the blue-black spines that were beginning to grow from his back and tail.

"Yeah, I've seen the groundskeepers walking around after dark," Jaune said. "There are a lot of them!" He looked at Twiggy, who was busy digging near a tree with Pit, and smiled. Though she continued to be dwarfed by the others, her muscles were filling out nicely, and she was growing at a normal rate. One could mistake her for being a few weeks younger, but she was otherwise very healthy.

He owed a lot of that to Titan, Freya, and Ao Guang, who always included their small sister in their personal sparring matches. Unlike Mudslide, who would constantly bully Twiggy and beat her into the ground, Twiggy's siblings actually were trying to help her get better. Jaune knew that this was how dragonets instinctively trained themselves in the wild, but it was still heartwarming.

It was also nice that Team CRDL had backed off since that fight in the courtyard. Jaune wasn't sure if it was because they were now intimidated by his team, or because Ozpin had said something to scare them. Either way, he wasn't complaining.

Freya was snuggled against Nora, partially because her usual sunny spots weren't as warm now that the weather was changing, partially because she wanted to comfort her partner. The poor human was still walking with a limp. Freya always made sure to hiss menacingly at Tornado whenever she saw him, just in case he was thinking of trying anything else.

Ren, of course, was sitting right next to Nora, allowing his best friend to rest her head on his shoulder while he watched Ao Guang chase a cricket.

Ruby sat with Yang, watching Storm and Nimbus attempting to fly. The wind dragons took turns running up some ramps that had recently been put up in the courtyard, and spreading their wings. Nimbus was, by far, the best. His large wings held him perfectly, and he was able to angle his body well, keeping himself from crashing on his face. Ruby couldn't help but notice, however, that his eyes were usually closed when he jumped.

Storm wasn't showing any changes in behavior. Ever since the incident with the implant, Ruby had stayed close to her at all times, making sure that she wouldn't have any sudden meltdowns. She knew that this probably wasn't a good idea, since she was still working on making her dragon independent. Since the end of autumn would see the dragonets moving into outdoor stalls, it was becoming even more important that Storm wasn't joined to Ruby at the hip.

Her play with Nimbus and the others seemed normal enough, and she wasn't sticking quite as close to Ruby when they walked together, so that was good. Hopefully, she'd be able to adapt to her new stall quickly when the time came.

"Fang, get over here," Yang called, noticing a dangerous glint entering her dragonet's eye as he stepped closer to Huo.

Fang hesitated, then trotted over, huffing sulkily. A slight puff of smoke left his mouth. That was happening a lot lately.

Yang grinned. "Easy, boy. You're too young to smoke." She snickered while those closest to her groaned loudly.

"Yang, that joke wasn't funny the first dozen times!" Blake called over.

"Really? I thought it was a pretty smokin' one."

"Boo!" Sun shouted.

"Man, now I'm all fired up!"

"Make it stop!" Neptune moaned, covering his ears.

"Pit, headbutt Yang," Blake commanded.

Immediately, Pit stopped digging. He looked around for a moment before his gaze settled on Yang. He blinked once, putting the words together. He knew what headbutt meant, and he knew who Yang was. If that was what Blake wanted, he'd do it. Barking excitedly, he barreled across the yard, lowering his head.

Yang's eyes widened. "Whoa!" She barely jumped out of the way of the rampaging dragon. "Blake, are you crazy? He's almost the size of a pony- Oh shit, call him off!" she yelped when the earth dragon circled around and came toward her again.

Blake laughed, "Okay, okay. Pit, stop."

Pit skidded to a halt, perplexed. He still hadn't headbutted Yang. Why did Blake want him to stop? He glanced at Fang, who was hissing and lashing his tail, and decided not to question anything. Instead, he returned to Twiggy, who had stopped digging and was waiting patiently for him to return.

He paused by Zircon, yipping once for him to follow.

Zircon swallowed loudly, but followed the larger earth dragon nonetheless. He felt safe enough with Pit, he supposed.

"Man," Sun muttered as he watched the freckled earth dragonet. "I'm still having trouble getting Huo to listen to me without chomping me. We're still working on one-word commands."

"Hasn't he mellowed out yet?" Blake wondered, frowning. "I thought the fire dragons are starting to become more mellow at this point. I know Fang is."

"Thank Dust for that!" Yang exclaimed. _Though that kind of happened all at once during that fight at the crash site…_

Sun shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe he's just a fiercer fire dragon. Maybe he just hates me."

"Oh, don't start that," Ruby said, turning away from Storm to look up at Sun. "Your dragon loves you."

"I don't know. There's something almost deliberate about the way he attacks me," Sun said, folding his arms. "It's more calculated than before. It's weird."

"Do you think he's testing you in some way?" Neptune wondered, frowning as he watched his best friend. He didn't like the look of uncertainty that decorated Sun's face in that moment. _I guess getting regularly chewed on by your own dragon can cause even Sun to wear down…_

"I doubt it. I've been disciplining him like Port said, but it's just not working." Sun walked over to Huo and patted his back. The fire dragon stood still before suddenly whipping around and snapping at his hand, which he quickly drew back. "See?"

"Maybe he doesn't like it when you touch his back," Yang suggested. "Since I stopped trying to touch Fang's head, he stopped biting as much."

"He reacts like that, no matter what I do." Sun sat down, flinching but not making any move to pull away when Huo bit down on his tail.

Neptune, on the other hand, walked over. He noticed that Huo didn't keep his jaws down on Sun's tail, but released it immediately with a huff. "Want me to bandage that?"

"Nah," Sun replied casually, even though jolts of pain were going through his body from his sensitive tail. "I'll wash it when we go inside. My tail doesn't really bleed much."

Nymph padded over to Huo, growling disapprovingly. Why did he have to be so mean to his partner? She nuzzled against Neptune's leg while continuing to give her brother a disparaging glare.

Huo snorted angrily at his sister. She acted all high and mighty, but her partner was a complete wimp, even now! At least _his_ partner was toughening up. His reflexes were good, as was his pain tolerance. Huo made sure to toughen up his siblings whenever they interacted, so why shouldn't he do the same for his partner?

Nymph tossed her head, advising that maybe Huo would do well to mix some affection in with his little "strength tests."

Affection? Huo lashed his tail. He didn't need _his_ partner thinking it was okay to cringe away from fire, thank you very much. How was _her_ partner doing with his swimming lessons, he wondered.

Nymph bristled immediately, her head fins flaring out and a low growl rising in her throat. She would _not_ tolerate another insult toward Neptune.

Huo met his sister's blue gaze for a moment, saw the ferocity there, and slowly lowered his head, letting out a resigned rumble.

Sun and Neptune, of course, understood little of what had passed between the two dragonets, except for a few growls and Huo's submissive posture at the end. "Huh," Neptune said, his brows going up. "It looks like there's at least someone who can calm him down."

Sun nodded. "I guess you ended up with our team's alpha dragon."

"Sweet!" Neptune grinned before looking at Sun's tail again. A red stain was spreading across the fur. "Okay, I'm cleaning that up right now."

"Dude, it's fine."

Neptune was already taking his first aid kit from his backpack. "Do you want your entire tail stained red? I don't think so. Just hold still."

Sun rolled his eyes. "Okay, _Mom_."

The two continued to bicker as Neptune cleaned and wrapped his friend's tail. Scarlet giggled quietly as he watched. "They act like an old married couple," he murmured.

"That's one way to look at it," Sage chuckled.

Ruby felt her Scroll vibrating in her pocket. She took it out, seeing that she had a new message. When she saw what it was, her brows furrowed.

Pyrrha noticed her expression. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh, uh, just got a reply from Professor Oobleck about my test," Ruby lied as she pocketed her Scroll.

"Ugh, don't remind me of those freaking tests," Jaune groaned. "I'm pretty sure I flunked the water dragon anatomy test. Seriously, how many air sacks do those things even have?!"

"Four," Neptune promptly replied. "Two in the upper body, two in the lower body. They can expand and contract them depending on the needed level of buoyancy."

"Neeeerrrrrrrd!" Sun drawled.

"Hey! The term you're looking for is 'intellectual.'"

"Nah, I'm pretty sure I meant nerd."

While the two started squabbling again, Yang walked back over to Ruby and sat down. "What's up?" she muttered.

"Ozpin," Ruby whispered. "I'll tell you on the way back."

Yang nodded and said nothing more on the subject.

…..

It was nearly dinner time when the three teams finally took their dragons back inside to rest. Ruby, however, walked toward the main building with Storm, keeping one hand on her dragonet's head.

The message from Ozpin had been simple: "Come to my office before dinner. Bring Storm."

 _Does this have to do with that fight at the crash site?_ Ruby wondered. She and her team had kept their word to Ozpin, not telling anyone about what had happened. A few people knew about the crash, but since no one had died, it had quickly become old news.

Her stomach dropped when she entered Ozpin's office and saw a familiar metal place sitting on his desk. Dragonmaster Ozpin was sitting behind his desk, hands folded, a troubled look on his face. "Hello, Miss Rose," he greeted. "Hello, Storm. Have a seat."

Ruby sat down in one of the armchairs and Storm sat down on the floor next to her. "What's going on?" she asked, keeping one protective hand on her dragon's back.

Storm chirped softly, noticing a familiar metal item on the desk. She tried to step forward, but a command from Ruby kept her from getting too close.

Ozpin took a deep breath, letting it out as a long sigh. "Miss Rose, I desperately need your help. You are free to say no, but please hear me out first. Will you do that for me?"

Ruby's eyes narrowed. She already knew what her answer would be, but supposed it would be polite to let the Dragonmaster talk. "Okay."

Ozpin nodded. "Thank you. Obviously, you remember this device: the Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant, P.E.N.I. for short. I told you after the incident at the crash site that Ragnar and I had been tasked with testing the beta model. Well, I tried putting it on Ragnar today." He touched the plate. "It rejected him immediately, and would not listen to my orders. It would seem that this current model can only attach itself to a single dragon. Once that attachment occurs, its functions are molded exclusively to that dragon."

"I'm not putting that thing on Storm again," Ruby said flatly.

"Let me finish," Ozpin said, holding up a hand. "As I said before, this device does not cause any harm to dragons. Even when it malfunctioned and rejected Ragnar, he was not harmed. I've known that dragon for years, so I'd know if something bad had happened. More importantly, I would never harm him."

He tapped the device. "This beta model was sent here at great risk. It is also the only one of its kind at the moment. To make a new one and send it out would be time-consuming, making it impossible for the unveiling during the Dragon Festival to happen. If the unveiling doesn't happen, the Council will not be happy. If the Council isn't happy, they may put the creation of the final invention into the hands of someone less interested in the overall welfare of the dragons involved."

Ozpin looked at Storm. "I would not be asking this if I wasn't desperate for help," he said frankly. "You are a first-year, and should not be worrying about these things. However, my hands are tied."

Ruby looked at the P.E.N.I. and groaned. Why did Ozpin have to bring up the overall welfare of dragons? That made it really hard to say no! And there was also the fact that Storm seemed very eager to get closer to the implant.

"As an added incentive," Ozpin continued. "Since the implant will only work for Storm, that means that Storm will have to be there for the unveiling." He smiled. "I will personally make special arrangements, allowing you and your team to travel to Mistral for the Remnant Dragon Festival. Would you like that?"

"Yes, but you can't bribe me into putting that thing on my dragon!" Ruby said, though she could feel her resistance fading. If Ozpin was telling the truth, if there was a chance that the implant could be given to someone else… She imagined a flight of brainwashed, mind-controlled dragons flying to their deaths and shuddered.

"She won't wear it all the time," Ozpin promised. "Only when you bring her in. Think of them as extra lessons. We'll get her used to it and figure out the device's capabilities. It may only take a few times. I repeat: It won't harm her."

Ruby looked at Ozpin, at the device, and finally at Storm. "What do you think?"

Storm blinked, tilting her head, then looked back at the metal plate. A nice voice came from that plate. She wanted to hear the nice voice again. Tossing her head, she chirped happily.

Ruby breathed a sigh, then reluctantly nodded her head. "Okay," she muttered. "We'll help you."

Ozpin's shoulders relaxed. "Thank you, Miss Rose. You are doing a great service to every dragon in Remnant."

Ruby wanted to believe that was true. At that moment though, the only thing she was sure of was that she was definitely not in the mood for dinner that night.

 **And so it begins! I originally wanted the implant to stay on all the time, but I realized it would make no sense since it wouldn't allow Storm to develop her own personality. Also, Ozpin would likely want to keep the thing a secret. Next week will be a chapter devoted to our water and ice Riders.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	25. Baby Steps

**Hello, everyone! You're getting an early update today since I'll be spending most of today and tonight on airplanes. Yep, I'm finally going to Ireland! I couldn't be more hyped. I'll be sure to keep updating this and Shattered Moon, even while I'm on my trip. Make sure to check every Tuesday and Friday, as I don't think Fanfiction has fixed its email notifications yet.**

 **This week's dragon spotlight goes to Bryce from** _ **Angels with Scaly Wings**_ **. So, this is something I discovered recently: There's a freaking dragon dating sim on Steam! It's very text-heavy, and some of the routes seem more like friendship routes than romantic ones, but Bryce's route was definitely a romance! Bryce is the chief of police in the modern-esque dragon realm your character goes to. He enjoys drinking contests and has a buddy-cop relationship with his coworkers. His blushing sprite is also freaking adorable.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Before arriving at the water arena, Weiss opened a new video message from Winter. To her surprise, it was a video of only her sister. Steele was nowhere in sight.

"Good morning, Weiss," Winter said. "Today's lesson will be held with your fellow water Riders. I have sent details to Professor Goodwitch already. Remember when I told you that having an ice dragon on your team will involve making up for the lack of a water dragon?"

Weiss nodded, though she knew that Winter couldn't see her.

"Today is the day you start those lessons. Specter should be strong enough to swim. Even though ice dragons do not have gills, webbed paws, or a flat tail, they can be made into capable swimmers. If you look at Specter's paws, you'll notice that they are almost shovel-like when the toes are pressed together, making them ideal for treading water. Also, since ice dragons are made to endure frigid temperatures and can fly in high, mountainous regions with less oxygen, they can be taught to hold their breaths for long periods of time." Winter glanced at something off-screen. "If you'll excuse me, I am on my way to my morning drills. Good luck."

Weiss smiled down at Specter, who was trotting cheerfully at her side. "I'm afraid you won't get to chew on any ice blocks today," she murmured.

Specter tilted his head up at her and whistled.

When she got to the water arena, she went to stand next to Neptune and Ren, who gave her surprised looks. "Specter is going to start swimming today," she explained.

"You guys can take my turn," Neptune muttered.

"You will do just fine," Ren assured him, managing to keep any traces of doubt from his voice. Truthfully, he was convinced that Neptune would have a panic attack of some sort. This would be the first lesson that would involve the Riders being completely submerged. All of the students, except for Weiss, were clad in swimsuits and had goggles. Neptune was noticeably shaking.

At that moment, Professor Goodwitch approached. "You won't need to worry about swimming this time, Miss Schnee," she explained. "Since your dragon will just be starting to learn, there may be some thrashing. Once he gets better, you will learn to swim alongside him. You will go last today."

Glynda marched across to the arena, which had been altered for the larger-sized dragonets. Half of it was now taken up by a deep, sloped pool. "Today, you will be going underwater with your dragons. They are not large enough for you to sit on their backs quite yet. That's fine, since you will need to improve your own swimming skills. If you need help, wrap part of your arm around the base of your dragon's neck from the back. That's where the saddle will someday go, and therefore has a large muscle mass. Holding them there won't hurt them."

She looked at her clipboard. "Mister Thrush and Barracuda, you will be first today."

Russel grinned as he stepped forward. Barracuda trotted easily at his heels, glancing over her shoulder to sullenly hiss in Ao Guang's direction.

Guang tossed his head and growled a warning, satisfied when the other water dragon padded away. Still, he pressed a little closer to Ren, just in case.

Weiss gave Russel a distasteful look. "Has he apologized at all for that fight?"

"No," Ren replied. "And I doubt he will."

"At least he and Barracuda get along okay," Neptune sighed. "Sage has been telling me about how Cardin treats Mudslide during their elemental class. If anyone should have their dragon taken away, it's him." He glanced toward the pool and winced as Russel and Barracuda briefly resurfaced so that the Rider could take a breath. "That's, uh, really deep."

"Is your fear really still troubling you?" Weiss asked, belatedly realizing how judgmental her voice sounded. Thankfully, Neptune seemed too nervous to be offended.

"Yeah. I've been, uh, doing some extra practices. It's hard, though."

"Isn't it less scary with your dragon?"

"A little." Neptune smiled down at Nymph, who purred loudly in response. His smile quickly faded when Russel and Barracuda finished and Glynda called him to the pool next.

Nymph looked up at her partner as the two walked toward the pool. His face was growing pale and he was starting to shake. By this point, she understood what that meant. He was scared. Initially, Nymph had responded to his fear, thinking that he was seeing something in the water that she couldn't. By now, she knew that the water itself was what scared Neptune. She wasn't sure why, but she would make sure to keep him safe. She was a water dragon, after all.

So, when they got to the pool, she nudged his leg gently while letting out an ongoing purr. That usually calmed him down. She let him set the pace as they walked deeper. When she started treading water with her webbed paws, Neptune froze. The water was past his waist.

"Today please, Mister Vasilias." Glynda's voice held an odd mixture of annoyance and sympathy.

Neptune winced. _Just get it over with._ Taking a deep breath, he started treading water, then finally dived downward.

His ears pounded and his head felt as if someone was pressing on his skull on all sides. The water caused his vision through his goggles to swim. He couldn't move! He couldn't-!

Something solid touched his hand, and he turned to see Nymph's familiar blue eyes regarding him. He watched her open gills as the water passed through them, took in the smoothness of her scales. His heart was still pounding, but he managed to put his hand on her shoulder, allowing her to pull them both forward.

Feeling the water rushing past him was almost enough to make him start panicking. He tried looking at Nymph, tried focusing on how her webbed paws and flat tail pulled them through the water. Then, he felt his head starting to get light. He moved toward the surface, and Nymph followed.

When they surfaced, he realized that they were halfway across. The sun was on his face and he took in deep lungfuls of air. Again, he became fully aware of where he was, and started to shake. Wasn't this good enough? Could he stop?

"The rest of the way, Mister Vasilias. You're doing well," Glynda called.

Russell snorted. "Yeah. At this rate, we'll be done by sunset."

"Oh, be quiet!" Weiss snapped. "At least he's working to overcome his fear and doesn't feel the need to set his dragon on others in order to feel manly."

A few people clapped in response to Weiss's words. It seemed that Team CRDL wasn't popular with any of the other students or dragons.

Russell's face flushed with anger. "At least I don't act all high and mighty just because Daddy gave me a designer dragon!"

Weiss rolled her eyes, not even gracing that statement with an answer. She noticed Specter giving her a concerned look, and gently patted his head.

Meanwhile, Neptune burst out of the water at the other end of the pool, sputtering and coughing loudly. He hadn't taken a deep enough breath, and ended up inhaling some water. He crawled out of the pool, sides heaving as he spat out a mouthful.

Nymph was at his side, whimpering with concern.

Russel snorted. "Well, I guess you guys will have to hope he doesn't have anything contagious, or both you and your dragons will catch it. He probably puked out half the pool just now."

"Don't be stupid," Weiss snapped. "These pools use water and earth Dust to keep them clean at all times. Honestly, do you ever get bored of constantly spouting idiotic statements?"

Ren bit his lip to keep from smirking too obviously.

Glynda strode over and knelt in front of her student, relieved when she saw that he had already coughed out most of the water he had swallowed. "You're doing better. Keep up the extra practice sessions. You may never get over your fear, but you can learn to master it."

"Th-Thank you," Neptune managed to say, smiling shakily. Honestly, he was just happy to get away from the pool and sit down in the drying area, burying his face in a towel while Nymph's scales caused most of the water on her to slide right off.

When Ren's turn came, he heard Guang take a deep breath and smiled fondly. His dragon already understood the need to be underwater, and was getting better and better at holding his breath.

They ended up surfacing only twice, the first time because Guang had misjudged how much of a breath he had needed to take, the second because Ren had needed air. Glynda was very pleased when they emerged.

"At this rate, people won't be able to recognize his gill problem at first glance," she said, nodding with approval. "Miss Schnee and Specter!" she called.

Weiss walked over to Glynda, awaiting her instructions.

"You won't need to have him swim from one side to the other," Glynda assured her. "This will just be an exercise to get him used to the water. Command him so that he enters the water, and try to get him to swim out a few feet. Even though he isn't a water dragon, all dragons can paddle instinctively on some level. Let's just see how he does and go from there."

"Yes, professor," Weiss replied, leading Specter to the slope. She pointed to a spot in the water. "Specter, forward."

Specter blinked up at her and cautiously touched the water with his forepaw. He sat down and whined loudly.

"Oh, don't give me that!" Weiss said. "It won't hurt you." She dipped her hand in to prove it. "See? Once you get better, I'll be going in with you. Now, go on. Forward!"

Specter thumped his tail on the ground, splashing Weiss in the face with pool water. A few of the other students snickered

Weiss sighed, wiping her face off. "No treats if you don't listen," she said.

Specter froze. The words "no treats" were immediately understood. He looked at Weiss's pointing finger, let out a long sigh, and reluctantly entered the water. He flailed for a moment before realizing that pressing his toes together made it easier to push himself forward. He tried moving his tail up and down like he had seen the water dragons do, but that wasn't working. He splashed around, squawking with confusion. Scrunching his eyes shut, he tried to focus on not sinking. If only the water was colder, more solid…

A crackling noise filled the air and a cool mist rose from the pool. Weiss let out a gasp.

The edges of the pool nearest Specter were freezing. As Weiss and Glynda watched, a thin, icy sheen appeared over the water in a circle around the struggling ice dragon.

Glynda gaped for only a moment before regaining her composure. "You can bring him back now, Miss Schnee."

Weiss nodded and called to Specter. "Specter, come!"

Gladly, Specter made his way back to the shallow side of the pool and scrambled out. Water droplets turned to ice on his scales. It felt wonderful! Whistling loudly, he bounded toward Weiss, surprised when she took a step back.

Weiss was looking warily at her dragon, remembering what her father had said about how cold an ice dragon's scales could get. "Good boy, Specter," she murmured. Seeing his hurt, confused look, she abandoned caution and knelt in front of him, chancing a quick touch to his scales. To her relief, they were cold, but not enough to cause injury. Without hesitation, she embraced the ice dragon. "Good job, Specter. You did such a good job."

Specter nuzzled Weiss's shoulder, purring happily.

When class let out, Ren and Neptune invited Weiss to walk with them, noticing the surprised and pleased expression that briefly passed across her face when they asked.

"So, you're the first one in our class whose dragon started using its powers!" Neptune noted.

"Well, I don't think it counts as the first in this class, since Specter's an ice dragon and not a water dragon," Weiss pointed out.

"Still." Neptune shrugged, glancing down at Nymph. "Thanks again, girl."

Nymph chirped cheerfully.

"You did well," Ren commented. He almost said "better than I thought you would," but managed to stop himself. "I'm only sorry that you didn't get to hear Weiss telling Russel off."

"Wait, what?" Neptune grinned. "I need to hear this!"

Ren briefly recounted the conversation, causing his friend to let out a whoop.

"Ouch!" Neptune said with a laugh. "Hope he's got some aloe vera for that buuuuurn!"

Weiss couldn't help but smile a little.

"Burn? Who's getting burned?" a familiar voice called before Sun, Yang, and Pyrrha approached. Sun was looking at Neptune. "What's the burn?"

"Weiss completely roasted Russel today," Neptune replied.

"Nice!" Sun gave Weiss a thumbs-up. "Knock 'em dead, ice queen!"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Must you call me that?"

"Yes. Yes, I must!" Sun wrapped an arm around Neptune's shoulders. "So, how was the swimming? You're obviously not dead, so I guess you did well."

"Ha ha." Neptune rolled his eyes, though he didn't make any move to push Sun away. "I did okay. Nymph kept me from freaking out too much."

"Good to hear." Sun ruffled his friend's still-damp hair. "I knew you had it in you- OW!" He jumped when Huo snapped at his heel. "Do you mind?!"

Neptune shook his head. "Maybe he thinks you're a Grimm," he suggested.

"Very funny." Sun rubbed his ankle and grimaced.

Nymph padded over to her brother and firmly headbutted his shoulder, giving him an exasperated glare.

Huo shrugged. His partner had let his guard down.

Nymph shook her head. People didn't need to be on guard all the time! It was impossible. They'd be exhausted.

Huo huffed and rolled his eyes

"How was your class?" Ren asked while Sun checked his heel for any blood.

"We started teaching them to endure higher temperatures using heated pads," Pyrrha said. "Huo did very well."

"Has Dove been giving you a hard time at all?" Neptune wondered.

"Actually, no," Pyrrha noted. "He really doesn't speak unless Professor Port asks him a question. He avoids most eye contact. His dragon is skittish, too, similar to Zircon or Twiggy."

"He didn't take part in the fight," Ren remembered. "It could be that he was stuck with the wrong team."

Neptune looked at Sun as he straightened up. "You okay, dude?"

"Yeah," Sun sighed. "I'm just getting really tired of this."

"Maybe some more exercise would help," Ren suggested. "You could try taking him out for a walk. That always calms Guang down."

"It'd have to be the evening," Sun said. "I don't trust him to not snap at random people."

"Nymph and I could go with you," Neptune suggested hopefully.

"Thanks, but I think it should be just me and Huo." Sun smiled at his leering dragonet. "Let's see if we can bond without Nymph keeping him in line."

Neptune smiled fondly at his dragon. "She is pretty good at that, isn't she?"

Nymph chirped happily when Neptune looked at her, also managing to spare a smug look for her grumbling brother.

 **Have I mentioned how much I love character and dragon interactions? Because I do. A lot.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	26. Emerging Powers

**This week's update sees me in a relatively nice hostel with really crappy WiFi. Thankfully, Fanfiction seems to be working okay. Due to the time difference in Ireland and the fact that I need to update when I'm not sightseeing, you'll be getting much earlier updates until I go back home in a little over a week. After that, things will be more regular again.**

 **This week's dragon spotlight goes to Rhaegal from** _ **A Song of Ice and Fire.**_ **Admittedly, I stopped reading and watching this series. There's only so much death/torture/rape I can handle in a fictional work. However, I do still follow what's happening with the dragons. I always liked Rhaegal, because he seems to be the least well-known of the dragons. Drogon gets the main spotlight, then Viserion. I never hear about the green and copper Rhaegal, though. When I was at an art show, I saw a portrait of Rhaegal and was told that the portraits of Drogon and Viserion were sold almost immediately. I guess I like the underdog. Also, green is my favorite color next to gold, so there's that.**

 **Anyway, enjoy.**

Blake glanced up from her book as three familiar earth dragonets bounded by. Pit, of course, was at the lead. Twiggy was right behind him, with Zircon taking up the rear.

It was a funny group of young dragons, each of a different size. Pit was the largest, bigger than most dog breeds at the shoulder. Zircon was the regular size for a dragon his age, two or three inches shorter than Pit. Twiggy, on the other hand, was about the size of a Golden Retriever.

"Don't be too bossy, Pit," Blake called good-naturedly, knowing that her dragon would pull his alpha act no matter what she said.

"Oh, he's fine," Jaune assured her, glancing up from his notes. "Twiggy doesn't mind. She's used to following Titan around."

"And Zircon definitely gets braver when Pit's nearby," Sage added. "I think he sees him as a secondary protector."

"I'm glad they get along so well," Blake said. "There's still some tension between my team's dragons."

"How so?" Sage wondered.

"I think it might have to do with them not being siblings," Blake admitted. "And the fact that Pit is older. He's definitely the alpha dragon, but it's more because the other three don't really care. Fang doesn't snap as much now, but he prefers Yang over the other dragons. Storm adores Ruby, but doesn't really play with the others. Specter fights with Pit occasionally, but that's it." She closed her book. "I'm a little worried. Aren't the dragons supposed to be close to each other?"

"I wouldn't worry," Jaune assured her. "Some dragons take longer to develop relationships, or even personalities. I mean, Titan still doesn't show much emotion. There have been other teams like yours. As long as they're not constantly fighting each other, I think you're good."

"I hope you're right," Blake sighed. Truthfully, she was feeling similarly about her human teammates. Though they were definitely closer since the fight at the crash site, she still felt as if they weren't as close as they could be.

Before, she would shun being too close to people. Being a Dragon Rider, however, made certain adjustments necessary, such as a rethinking of one's social limitations. She did feel a certain sense of comfort with all of her new friends. Besides her teammates, she was also perfectly able to spend time with the members of Teams SSSN and JNPR. Still, it didn't feel like the kind of friendship that was required of Riders, the kind of friendship that involved risking one's life for another and putting absolute trust in them.

There was a way for Blake to show absolute trust, of course. She could tell her teammates about the White Fang, Adam, and the true circumstances surrounding Pit's hatching. It would make sense, since there was a chance that Adam was involved with the attack on that airship and the attempted robbery of that piece of Atlesian tech.

But, how would they react? Weiss especially would probably hate her for being a former White Fang member. Wouldn't telling cause them to not trust her at all?

"Careful, Twiggy!" Jaune called to his dragon, who had started climbing the trunk of a large oak tree, her claws sinking into the heavily-scarred bark.

Blake turned her attention back to the dragons, feeling herself relax as she watched them. _All they need to worry about is getting stronger and eating. Must be nice._

Pit was digging at the root of the tree while Twiggy scrambled higher. Zircon was sniffing at some flowers. His nose wrinkled and he let out a loud sneeze.

Sage chuckled. "He loves flowers. He actually has a little collection of them in his bed."

A scrabbling noise caused them all to jump. Twiggy, who was now several feet off the ground, had just torn a large piece of bark from the tree and was struggling to get a good grip. Jaune stood up and started running toward the tree just as his dragon began tumbling downward.

Then, she stopped. She didn't hit the ground. She just stopped, hovering in midair for a moment, before gently landing in the grass.

Only Blake noticed that Pit was staring intently at the other dragon. She also saw that the silver freckles on his scales had taken on a slight glow.

Jaune blinked. "Huh?" He knelt down and called Twiggy over. "Hey, girl. You okay?" He checked her over for any bruises. "Did you do that?"

"I've never heard of a dragon levitating before." Sage walked over, also examining Twiggy. "Has she shown any signs of earth power yet?"

"I haven't seen anything," Jaune muttered, checking Twiggy's eyes.

Blake coughed, trying to sound nonchalant. "Um, I just remembered. Professor Ozpin wanted to see me this afternoon. I'd better go."

"Okay. See you later," Jaune muttered, still focused on Twiggy.

Sage, however, frowned as he watched Blake hurry over to Pit and urge him toward the main building. She seemed troubled, as if suddenly aware of something desperately important. He would have to ask her about it later.

Blake, meanwhile, rushed to the elevator that took her and Pit to Ozpin's office. There was a slight rattling sound as the doors opened and she was quick to usher her dragon out.

Ozpin answered after the second knock. His brows were up as he looked between Blake and Pit. "Has he shown signs of his powers?"

"Yes, sir," Blake replied.

"Come in." Ozpin beckoned the two into his office and set about examining Pit while Blake recounted what had just happened. When she was finished, he nodded slowly. "It would seem that your dragon's egg was injected with trace amounts of gravity Dust."

"Gravity Dust?"

"Yes." Ozpin stood up. "I was starting to wonder. With these new pygmy dragons, and their tendency to have silver freckles, I had my suspicions. This merely proves it."

"So, what now?" Blake asked. "I won't exactly be able to hide his powers. Someone will guess that he's a hybrid."

"This will be a tricky situation, but we're lucky," Ozpin said. "Gravity is a power closely associated with earth, so it will be possible to explain away certain things. You'll remain under my protection for as long as you're at Beacon. That's a promise. The Council won't do anything to Pit unless he poses a significant risk to anyone. Seeing how well-trained he is, I doubt that will be an issue."

"What about after graduation?"

"That's four years away. We have time to think of something before then." Ozpin sat down in his chair, folding his hands as he looked at Pit. "I've employed several people who the Council wouldn't necessarily want as official Riders. Keep up your studies and continue improving, and I'm sure I'll be able to find something for you."

Blake frowned. Between this and what she knew about that mental implant, Ozpin was starting to sound shadier and shadier by the minute. _At least he's pro-dragon,_ she thought. "What about my friends?"

"That's up to you, Miss Belladonna," Ozpin replied. "I will not divulge any secrets to anyone else. I will say this: Having a few trusted people in your corner is highly beneficial, especially if you're a Rider." He smiled knowingly. "Do with that knowledge what you will. Now, why don't you take Pit off to bed? I'm going to be meeting with Miss Rose soon."

"About the implant?"

"Yes."

 _Ruby did seem pretty distracted this morning. I guess that explains it._ Blake stood up. "Thank you, sir. Should I still keep bringing Pit back for you to check him?"

"No." Ozpin glanced toward the doors. "He's getting a bit big for the elevator. Once he's been moved to the outdoor stalls, I'll check on him occasionally myself."

"Should he be moved soon?"

"That's up to you," Ozpin said. "The other dragonets will be moved in two weeks. If you think he's getting too big for his bed, you can move him a week earlier. Or, you can wait to move him with the others. Since he's only a few days older, it shouldn't be too much of a problem. Have a good evening, Miss Belladonna."

"You too, sir." Blake nodded courteously before leading Pit onto the elevator, pointedly ignoring the creaking noises it made on the way down.

…..

Ruby tried not to fidget too much as she sat on a bale of hay next to Ragnar's immense stall. She tried not to think too hard about her upcoming lesson and the fact that she'd soon have to deal with her dragon having that mental implant back on. Instead, she took the time to appreciate her first look inside the earth dragon barn

Barn wasn't exactly the right word for it, as it was bigger than even the largest airship stations Ruby had ever seen. It was an immense fortress of stone, wood, and clay, and each stall was more than big enough for its gargantuan inhabitant.

Each dragon had a large, hay-covered platform that was walled on three sides. The area at the front was open, allowing the dragons to come and go as they pleased. A long hallway stretched down between each row of stalls, leading to doors that were easily pushed open. These doors led to the deep, fenced-in mud pits. Ruby remembered when Jaune had fallen into one on the first day, and laughed softly to herself.

Storm tilted her head at the noise her partner let out, and butted her head against Ruby's leg, chirping softly. There was something on the human's mind, something bothering her. That wasn't good!

Ragnar walked over and crouched down, gently touching the tip of his great muzzle to Ruby's back. "Ozzz gud," he rumbled.

Ruby smiled up at the old dragon. "I know Ozpin's good, and I know he wouldn't hurt Storm. I'm still worried, though."

Storm perked up at the mention of her name, though her attention was focused on Ragnar. She occasionally heard the older dragons making mouth sounds similar to the humans. Would she be able to talk to Ruby like that someday?

Ragnar shook his gray head. "Nnno fffear. Safe." He tapped his forehead with a long claw.

"You're saying…not to be afraid? The implant is safe." Ruby remembered that Ragnar had apparently volunteered to wear the device. When the earth dragon nodded, she felt herself relax a little. "I guess I just need to get used to this."

Storm tried positioning her tongue in a way that would allow her to speak. "Rrrrrrr. Rrrrrrrrrr."

Ruby giggled, hugging her dragon and kissing her snout. "Good job, Storm. You'll learn as you grow up."

Footsteps punctuated with the occasional tap of a cane caused Ruby to look up. Professor Ozpin was walking over, a gentle smile on his face as he regarded his student. "Are you ready, Miss Rose?"

"Uh, I think so," Ruby muttered as she stood up. "Thanks, Ragnar."

Ragnar rumbled softly in reply.

Ozpin gave his dragon a fond look. "He's a true pillar of sense. I often wonder if he should be running this school instead of me."

"Do you think he could?"

"Yes," Ozpin replied without hesitation. "I think the intelligence of dragons is something sorely underestimated in our society." He withdrew a familiar metal plate from his pocket. "With this, I hope we can start to prove that."

Ruby swallowed loudly. "Um, is the lesson going to be held here?"

"No. We'll go near the fence by the mud pits. Not as many students go near there. Too easy to fall in."

"Oh, I know," Ruby murmured. At Ozpin's questioning look, she explained what had happened to Jaune on the first day.

"I see," Ozpin chuckled. "Perhaps bonding to an earth dragon was already fated for him. Follow me."

The two went to a clear, grassy area near the mud pits. The sun was sinking in the sky and there were few lights in this part of the stable areas. Ozpin turned on a standing flashlight, set it on the ground, and knelt in front of Storm. "Are you ready, Storm?" He held up the metal plate.

Storm sniffed the metal, and her tail started to thump with excitement. This was the metal thing that had the nice voice! She thrust her head forward.

Ozpin placed it on her forehead, watching intently as the metal spread over her brow and down her back. "So, its adjustment to changing size works," he murmured. The light turned green.

Ruby took a step forward. "Storm?"

Storm turned her head toward Ruby. She felt that the metal voice wanted to speak, so let it.

"Salutations. I am the Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant. Rider recognized. Name requested."

"Uh." Ruby blinked. "Ruby Rose."

"Ruby Rose. Name now in database." The green light turned yellow for a moment before going back to green. "My initial activation was during a combat situation, making the explanation that is usually required a secondary priority. Would you like to hear it now?"

"Yes, please," Ruby said, glancing at Ozpin, who continued to watch silently.

The light blinked. "My purpose is to protect the dragon subject I have been assigned to, facilitate better communication, and accelerate the learning of the subject."

"Her name is Storm," Ruby commented. She didn't particularly like hearing her dragon being referred to as a subject, as if she was in a lab.

"Noted," the implant replied. "Name of dragon: Storm. Wind dragon. Female. Two months, two weeks, and a day old. May I continue?"

"Yes, sorry." Ruby's face flushed, though there was no hint of scolding in the voice's tone. Actually, it sounded like a friendly, feminine voice. Had it adjusted itself to match its bonded dragon?

"We will now run some basic exercises. Let us start with a conversation with your dragon. My sensors indicate that Storm can understand your words to an extent. Say something to her. I will then read her mental waves and interpret them as spoken words."

"O-Okay," Ruby looked at Storm, who continued to watch her passively. She didn't seem the least bit uncomfortable. "Um, hi Storm. Are you doing okay right now?"

The light turned yellow for a moment before the voice replied. "Yes, Ruby. I'm happy with the good voice. It's nice. Why are you nervous?"

"I'm just worried about you," Ruby explained. "I know this implant is a new thing, and I don't want you getting hurt."

"I am not hurt. I would tell you if I was hurt. Can I have an apple?"

Ruby giggled. "Later, Storm. Once we're done here, we can get a snack."

"Okay."

The light then turned green. "Her thoughts are still very juvenile in nature, but I translated as well as I could. Question regarding your conversation: Is your mind more at ease now?"

Ruby smiled. "I think so. Thanks." She paused, then asked: "So, are you Storm when you're attached to her?"

The light blinked. "No. My creators wanted to avoid direct control over the minds of dragons. Storm's actions are her own. I am merely a facilitator, similar to a servant or assistant. I will only take full control if in a hazardous situation that causes Storm's mental state to falter. Would you like to run another exercise?"

When Ruby looked at Ozpin, he nodded. "One more should do for tonight."

"Okay. One more, please."

The light blinked. "During the last time I was activated, I tapped into Storm's brain and used one of her wind-based powers called 'wing gust.' A second test of that power use would be prudent. Please choose a target and give the 'wing gust' command."

Ruby looked around, finally settling on a bush a few feet away. She pointed at it. "Okay. Storm, wing gust!"

The light turned red and Storm blinked. She turned around, fixing her gaze on the bush, standing on her hind legs and extending her wings. With one firm flap, a gust of wind caused the bush to shake violently.

Storm fell forward, shaking her head a little. She felt a little dizzy.

"Detecting lightheadedness," the device said, turning yellow and blinking. "It is requested that no more strenuous physical activity be attempted at this time. The wing gust was well-done."

Ozpin smiled at Ruby. "When you're ready, tell it to detach."

Ruby nodded, then looked back at Storm and the device. "Um, thank you for your help." She paused. "Do you have a name?"

The light turned green again. "I am the Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant. P.E.N.I."

"Then…How about I call you Penny?" Ruby asked. "It'll make it easier to talk to you, since I know you're different from Storm."

The light turned yellow. "Processing. This device's designated title is now Penny." Green again. "Is there anything else I can do to assist you?"

"Not now," Ruby replied. "Could you detach, please?"

Immediately, the metal retreated from Storm's back and traveled back up to her face. Once the small plate was back to its original size, the light went out and the metal fell into the grass.

Ozpin picked it up and nodded. "I think that went rather well." He gave Ruby a curious look. "I wasn't expecting you to give it a name, though."

Ruby shrugged. "I mean, I'm going to be talking to her a lot more, right? It makes sense." She knelt down next to Storm, who immediately licked her face. "Hey, girl. You doing okay?"

Storm chirped, nudging Ruby's chest. She had heard her partner mention the word "snack." She wanted apples!

Ozpin laughed. "Well, you'd better get your dragon back home for some well-deserved treats. That's all for today. I'll let you know when we'll be meeting next."

"Yes, sir!" Ruby stood up, leading Storm around the earth barn and back toward the dorms.

Ozpin watched her go before re-entering the earth barn and walking over to Ragnar. "Things seem to be going smoothly," he murmured.

Ragnar rumbled softly.

"Do you think they'll keep going well?"

Ragnar snorted and tossed his large head.

Ozpin sighed. "Neither do I, my old friend. Neither do I."

 **A few people predicted Pit having gravity powers, so good job! Next week will see me in an area with better WiFi, so that will be nice. Until then, I'll be enjoying Dublin. (Tip: Don't try to chug Guinness, even if you're being rushed on a bar crawl. I almost spat up my first pint doing that! Not fun.)**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	27. Trials of a Faunus

**Hello, everyone! This week's update will be the last one coming from overseas. I gotta say: Being in Ireland has put a lot of things into perspective for me. I'm going to be even more focused on my writing when I get back, so expect even more from me in the near future.**

 **This week's spotlight goes to the Red-Eyes Black Dragon from the** _ **Yu-Gi-Oh**_ **card game and TV series. I absolutely loved playing** _ **Yu-Gi-Oh**_ **as a kid and followed the show religiously. (And don't even get me started on the comedic awesomeness of the abridged series.) While the Blue-Eyes White Dragon is freaking amazing, I always preferred its darker counterpart. Then,** _ **GX**_ **came along and introduced me to the Darkness Dragon, and I was like "HOLY CRAP I WANT!" I haven't played in years, and apparently the rules have changed a lot. Also, they're playing card games on motorcycles for some reason. I don't know. The original and** _ **GX**_ **will always be the best times for** _ **Yu-Gi-Oh**_ **in my opinion.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

"I really wish I could see into your head, you little jackass," Sun muttered as he yanked on the leash in his hand, pulling his haltered dragon away from a cowering cat that had decided to peek out of a nearby alley.

Huo hissed as he was pulled away from the small animal. Why couldn't he try hunting it? He turned his head, trying to bite at the thick cloth straps that held him. He supposed he was big enough to just run along the concrete, dragging his partner behind him. Something was stopping him from doing that, though. Somehow, he knew that doing that would be taking his attempts to train his partner too far.

He was glad that his sister wasn't around to give him that superior huff that she was so fond of.

Sun noticed a dragon-friendly noodle stand nearby. "Okay, if we go get some food, can you keep from biting my foot off?"

Huo blinked at the mention of food. When he caught a whiff of the place his partner was leading him to, he decided that he could stand to be calm for a little while.

Sun ordered some spicy noodles for himself and a bowl of wheat noodles and beef broth with no salt for Huo, who happily started slurping. He smiled to himself, despite the lingering pain of several recent bites, and started on his own meal.

"Well, shit," a loud, obnoxious voice said from the sidewalk. "Looks like Beacon's just letting any old riffraff in nowadays."

 _Crap…_ Sun thought, feeling his tail curl as he glanced toward the source of the voice. Sure enough, there were three humans standing nearby. All of them were giving him and Huo very plain looks of disgust. He tightened his grip on his dragon's leash.

Huo, meanwhile, bristled and growled as he looked toward the new humans. Their stance clearly suggested that they were looking for a fight. Thankfully, his partner seemed to know that already and had grown tense. That was good. He wouldn't get taken by surprise.

The old man running the stand grumbled when he saw the three humans. "Don't pay them any mind," he muttered. "I've seen them around. They like looking for trouble."

"Thanks," Sun whispered back. "I just want to eat and go home." He took another slurp of noodles, hoping the idiots would go away.

They didn't, of course. In fact, they started to walk closer. "I mean, not only does Ozpin let the animals decide who gets in, but he lets animals in as students! What the hell?" The other two humans snickered.

"Maybe they'd rather send animals to fight the Grimm," one of the others suggested. "No one'll shed any tears if some kitty-cat got plucked up by a Nevermore."

Sun ground his teeth, but managed to take another bite of soup without responding. He dissipated some of his anger by mentally laughing at the idiocy of the humans. _Can't even tell the difference between a monkey and a cat. Morons._

He could feel Huo practically vibrating at the end of his leash. "Easy, boy," he muttered.

One of the humans heard. "Look at what he's got! Looks more like a rabid dog than a dragon!"

Sun glanced over his shoulder. "Actually, he bites way more than a rabid dog does. Don't get too close."

Immediately, it was clear that this was the wrong thing to say. All three boys strode forward, eager grins on their faces. The leader cracked his knuckles.

Sun stood up, wrapping his end of the leash around his wrist to get a better hold. "Hey, I don't want any trouble." He glanced at Huo, who had abandoned his bowl in favor of growling menacingly at the approaching humans. "Why don't we all just sit down? The noodles here are pretty great." He flashed a winning grin, hoping desperately that it would work.

The humans stopped, stared, then all started laughing. "Looks like we've got a scaredy-cat Dragon Rider, guys," one of them chortled.

Sun just stood there, hoping that his forced smile and raised hands would be enough to deter them. It was a well-practiced tactic that had saved him from several fights. Either the bigots in question decided that they didn't want to hurt someone who wasn't fighting back, or that he was too dumb to bother with. Neither was very good for his pride, but he had been taught from an early age to avoid getting into fights. If things went south, most judges would immediately rule in favor of the human. With the rise of the White Fang, that was even more true now.

Of course, his string of bad luck that week had to continue. The lead human walked closer and gave Sun's chest a firm shove. "Come on, scaredy-cat. Let's see what those animal trainers are teaching you- OW!"

The instant he saw the first human push his partner, Huo struck like a viper. His fangs were deep in the enemy's leg. He bit down as hard as he could, growling deeply. His gray eyes were wide and manic. When the human started screaming, he let go and moved to stand in front of his partner, hissing loudly as his tail lashed. Why hadn't Sun done anything? Was he really too pathetic to fight back?

"Huo, settle!" Sun immediately pulled Huo back using both hands. "Come on, boy. Let's get back to Beacon." He'd have to come back and pay for his dinner later. Right then, all that mattered was keeping his dragon from doing any more damage.

The two other thugs stared at their leader's injury, then simultaneously rushed forward. One kicked dirt into Huo's eyes while the other made for Sun, aiming a punch at his face.

Sun ducked to the side, retaliating with a firm blow to his assailant's stomach. In the process, he lost his hold on Huo's leash.

Huo roared in anger, pawing at his eyes. He felt hands on his back. He snarled, his rage rising in his chest until it seemed to be seeping out of his scales.

"ARGH!" The thug that had tried to grab Huo jumped back, blowing on his hands. "It burned me!"

Sun, meanwhile, managed to knee his opponent in the groin, causing him to collapse. He immediately ran over to Huo, grabbing his leash and trying to pull him back.

"Freeze!" a new voice shouted. "Hands in the air!"

 _Wonderful. This is just perfect!_ Sun gritted his teeth as he put his hands up. "Huo, settle for the love of Dust!"

Huo, of course, was still in fight-mode, growling threateningly at the new humans who were now approaching. They had weapons in their hands. He stood in front of Sun and dug his claws into the ground.

Three cops approached, all of whom pointing guns at Sun and Huo. "Restrain your dragon!" one of the cops shouted.

 _Restrain my dragon, or put my hands in the air?! Make up your freaking mind!_ Sun bit his tongue as he knelt next to Huo and put his hands on his back. He winced as the scales burned his palms.

Huo glanced at Sun and tried to lower the temperature of his scales. Burnt hands wouldn't help in this situation.

At that moment, the old man exited the stand and walked over. "Hey, officers! You're pointing your guns at the wrong guy. This is the customer who was being harassed. Those three are the thugs I told you about."

Sun groaned. The old man had called the cops. _He probably thought he was helping, but damn…_

The cops continued to point their weapons toward Sun and Huo. "What started the fight?"

Sun took a deep breath, trying to keep any traces of sarcasm or anger from his voice. "I was taking my dragon for a walk. We stopped to get some food. Those guys came over and started getting in my face. I tried to leave, but one of them hit me."

One of the cops walked over to the lead thug, who was holding his leg and whimpering. "And what about this bite?"

"Huo did that after that guy hit me," Sun said. "He was trying to protect me."

One of the cops took a step closer, causing Huo to snarl. "Sir, if you don't keep that beast under control, we won't hesitate to taze it."

Sun held Huo a little tighter, trying to keep his anger from showing. His hands shook as he watched the cops take statements from each of the human thugs, and then the old man. After a few more minutes, one of them asked for Sun's ID. He gave it to them. The cop scanned it and handed it back along with a slip of paper.

"We're going to let you off with a warning this time, Faunus," he said. "But if anything like this happens again, we will have to issue an order that this dragon has to be muzzled outside of Beacon Dragonry. Do you understand?"

Again, years of ingrained knowledge kept Sun from saying something stupid. "Yes, sir." He noticed that the thugs were being shepherded off without so much as a slap on the wrist. He faintly heard the lead thug refusing an offer for an ambulance.

Once the police were gone, Sun returned to the stand and sat down heavily. The broth of his soup was cold by this point, but he drank it down anyway before opening his wallet.

A hand tapped the counter lightly, stopping him. The old man was giving him a sympathetic look. "This one's on the house. I hope that incident won't stop you from coming back."

Sun managed a smile. "Just don't call the cops next time."

The man looked at him sadly. "The police here aren't all like that. This was just a real unlucky night all around." He started rummaging in the back. "Do you like flan?"

"Yeah, but you don't have to-"

"Too late." The man returned with a chilled plate of pre-made flan. "Eat up, then take that dragon of yours home. I'm sure he needs a rest after that."

Sun accepted the free dessert and glanced down at Huo. His dragon was slurping at what remained of his beef broth, occasionally glancing over his shoulder for any new threats. He smiled and reached down to pat his back. Huo just looked at him, not even opening his jaws. "Good boy, Huo," he murmured. "Good boy."

When he got back to campus, he ran into Ruby. It looked like she was coming from the earth barn. "Ruby?" He tilted his head. "What are you doing out?"

Ruby jumped. "Oh, uh, just taking Storm for a walk." She took a closer look at Sun, noticing a few bruises. "Are you okay? Did your walk with Huo go well?"

"I…yeah," Sun replied, wincing as he heard the obvious crack in his voice.

Storm warbled in concern and trotted over to Huo, licking his shoulder comfortingly. She was normally terrified of the fire dragon, but he looked so tired and downtrodden right then.

Huo just blinked at her, his eyes narrowed as he repeatedly played back what had happened in his mind. Why had things gone this way? Why did he have the distinct feeling that, despite their obvious superiority over their opponents, that he and Sun had somehow lost?

Ruby gently touched Sun's arm. "What happened?"

Sun shook his head. "Just…Just some bigoted assholes. Nothing to worry about." His voice shook a little. Now that he wasn't in a public place like the noodle stand, he could feel his earlier façade of carelessness breaking down.

Ruby squinted. It was hard to tell in the darkness, but Sun definitely looked like he was trying not to cry. Wordlessly, she stepped forward and hugged him. His arms were trembling as they came up to hug her back. "Don't worry about it," she muttered. "People like that aren't worth the brain cells. That's what Dad always says."

Sun let out a laugh, hating how it sounded just like a sob. "Your dad sounds pretty smart."

"He sure is," Ruby replied.

For a few minutes, the friends just stood there, Ruby hugging a silently-crying Sun and Storm purring gently at a dejected Huo. Then, without saying anything else, they parted ways and went to their dorms.

When Sun entered his team's dorm, he walked right over to the bed and sat down. Huo, for once, didn't chew on anything before plopping down in his bed.

Questions were still buzzing in the fire dragon's head. Why hadn't they defeated the ones who had attacked them? Why had Sun been put down after their obvious victory? Something had happened, something Huo didn't understand, and it was bothering him to no end.

Sun, meanwhile, just lay back on his bed and sighed.

There was a rustle to his left before Neptune's voice sounded near him. "Hey, dude. You okay?"

"I'll…tell you about it tomorrow," Sun muttered.

There was a pause before Sun felt a warm hand on his shoulder. "Okay. Goodnight."

"Night, Nep." Sun closed his eyes and quickly fell into an exhausted sleep.

…..

The following day, when the three teams were hanging out in the courtyard, Sun told everyone a full account of what had happened.

Neptune, of course, was enraged. "Next time, take me and Nymph with you! She'll drench them!"

"Nymph hasn't started showing signs of her powers yet," Sage gently reminded him.

"So? Huo used his fire powers for the first time when those jerks attacked Sun. Maybe Nymph would react the same way."

Yang punched Sun's shoulder. "Hey, look at the bright side: Huo's the first fire dragon in our grade to get his powers. That's pretty cool."

"It won't be cool if I have to muzzle him," Sun sighed.

"So, just wait till he's better trained before you take him into town next time," Pyrrha suggested. "Or take him to a more deserted area. They can't make you muzzle him if he doesn't lash out again."

Sun shrugged. "I mean, he has been more mellow since last night. I'm not sure why."

Weiss shook her head. "I honestly can't stand ruffians like that. Looking for any excuse to start a fight. Their words don't even have any merit. Beacon's screening process is the second best in the world."

There was a pause. Neptune let out an uncomfortable cough while Sun shifted, his tail twitching. Blake turned to glare at Weiss.

Ruby, on the other hand, was totally in the dark. "Screening process?"

"The Faunus screening," Sun explained, spitting out the words like a curse. "Any Faunus who want to enroll at a Dragonry have to go through an extra series of background checks and a mental exam."

"It's a racist and degrading practice," Blake growled, her eyes blazing.

Weiss frowned. "It's a necessary precaution. I mean, what would happen if a bunch of White Fang members ended up as Dragon Riders?"

Sun's eyes narrowed. "Being a Faunus doesn't mean you're in the White Fang," he said coldly

"Well, obviously not," Weiss said calmly. "You aren't. You passed the screening, didn't you?"

"You know, humans are just as likely to be criminals as Faunus," Blake pointed out, not even trying to keep the venom out of her voice. "I could think of several people in the Schnee Dust Company, for example."

Weiss's back stiffened. "I do not wish to talk about the Company, thank you," she said crisply.

Sun let out a sigh. "Why don't we talk about something else? Hey, Scarlet. Why don't you show everyone those pictures you took of Nimbus wearing those stupid goggles?"

Scarlet was all too eager to pull out his Scroll. "Sure! Let's see…"

The rest of the afternoon passed relatively amicably, though everyone was aware of an extra layer of tension and anger in their interactions. When they parted for the evening, Team SSSN was quick to make a beeline toward the dorms.

Team RWBY was silent as they walked back. Ruby glanced between Blake and Weiss, who continued to carefully avoid each other's gazes. There was a frosty silence between them that was nearly palpable.

Yang met her sister's eye and nodded when she saw the concerned shine there. The team would definitely have to talk about this, and soon. The last thing they needed was bad feelings between friends, much less teammates.

 **As I said before, I want to make Faunus racism more of an actual thing in this story. Sun's encounter was very much based on what's been going on with the police force in the States. And before anyone says anything, I know that most cops are good people. My mom actually works for a police department. There will be chapters showing encounters with good cops, so don't worry. It still can't be ignored that the handful of idiot, bigoted cops are causing a significant problem.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	28. Cooling Down

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! This week has a bit of Arkos goodness, along with a little chat between the members of Team RWBY. And some Sun comfort, of course.**

 **This week's dragon spotlight goes to Dragonite! Yep, that's right. The original Dragon-type Pokemon (even though Charizard is also basically a dragon). I remember slaving away on my copy of FireRed until I could finally afford a Dratini at the Game Corner. Then came the intense grinding until I finally got the sixth member of my team. Hats off to you, Dart. You won me a great many battles.**

 **Enjoy!**

"That was…tense," Jaune muttered as he and Pyrrha separated from the rest of the group and headed toward the arenas.

"That's putting it mildly," Pyrrha replied, glancing over her shoulder. She, of course, was aware of the feelings of animosity between the Faunus and the Schnee family. She hadn't expected it to be brought to light in such an uncomfortable and sudden way. "I hope this doesn't interfere with our friendship with everyone."

"Weiss didn't seem like she was trying to be mean," Jaune pointed out. "Did you notice that?"

"I did." Pyrrha nodded. "I think the problem here is that she was taught to think a certain way, not that she's actually a bad person."

"Yeah, I'm a pretty good judge of character. She's definitely not bad," Jaune said. "Just the other day, she sang to Twiggy to calm her down when she stubbed her toe. The dragons seem to really like her singing."

"Well, let's see what happens. Hopefully, they'll be able to talk things out." They reached the earth arena. "For now, let's focus on training."

"Yes, ma'am," Jaune replied with a smart salute. "What are your orders today, ma'am?"

Pyrrha rolled her eyes. "Stop sassing your teacher, for one."

Jaune grinned innocently. "Me? Sass you? Perish the thought!"

Pyrrha lightly swatted his shoulder, unable to keep from chuckling. "Anyway, we're going to do some basic sparring today. The dragonets are doing a good job of building up their muscles, but they can always do better. Also, sparring may cause their elemental powers to emerge."

"Yeah, I'm still not sure if Twiggy's started with that already." He looked at his dragon. "Nothing has happened since that weird levitation incident."

"It could have been one of the other dragons."

"Yeah, but can dragons lift other living things like that?" Jaune remembered that Blake had left almost as soon as Twiggy had touched the ground. Had Pit done something, perhaps?

"I'm not sure. For now, let's focus on sparring." Pyrrha gently touched Titan's back. "Titan, battle stance."

Titan moved his legs apart and crouched down, his tail lashing as he looked at Twiggy. He was ready to help his little sister get stronger. She was already getting better. Eventually, she'd be able to easily beat up Mudslide.

Twiggy didn't need any prompting to plant her paws firmly on the ground and growl softly. She liked fighting with her brother. He never hurt her too badly and always stopped when she got scared.

"Titan, begin," Pyrrha said, sitting on one of the stone benches in the arena to watch.

Titan jumped toward Twiggy, who nimbly rolled out of the way, snapping at his heels in the process. The two circled each other before Twiggy attempted to trip Titan with her tail. He yanked on it, pulling her close so that he could pin her down with his front paws.

"Settle," Jaune called, watching as both dragons immediately backed away from each other. He had noticed lately that Titan seemed perfectly willing to obey his commands. Twiggy also listened to Pyrrha just as easily as she listened to him. They were at a point where they had to partner with Ren and Nora for the dragon-switching exercises in order to feel any sort of challenge.

They waited for the dragonets to catch their breaths before ordering them to spar again. As they watched, Pyrrha shifted a little. "So, I noticed that there's a new _Red vs. Blue_ movie coming out," she started.

"Ooh, yeah! I saw the trailers. It looks pretty sweet," Jaune said. "It's gonna be based on some of the episodes in season fourteen. It should be good as long as they don't try to change the material too much."

Pyrrha smiled at his enthusiasm. "Well, since you've been doing so well with Twiggy, why don't we go see it on opening night? My treat. I'm sure Ren and Nora won't mind looking after Titan and Twiggy for a few hours."

Jaune grinned. "Sounds fun! I'll take care of the snacks. I didn't even know you liked _Red vs. Blue_."

Pyrrha's cheeks flushed. "Well, I've never actually seen it, but I keep hearing about how good it is, so…"

Jaune gasped. "Oh man, I'll have to start you on the series. It's basically required that you see the first five seasons before you see anything else. Reconstruction, Recreation, and Revelation come right after, and are even better! That's when the series' overall tone shifts from straight-up comedy to comedy with plot and feels. I'm a huge fan of the Chorus Trilogy, though opinions are split on that." He paused, realizing how nerdy he probably sounded. "I mean, if you're down for a marathon…"

"I'd like that," Pyrrha immediately replied. "I haven't marathoned a series in a long time."

"I guess dragon-wrangling is busy work." Jaune noticed a slight change in her expression. "Is there a reason you don't like talking about it?"

Pyrrha shrugged, glancing toward Titan and Twiggy, who had stopped sparring and were play scuffling. "Settle," she called before looking back at Jaune. "It was fun at first. Tracking down potential breeding dragons, analyzing them from a distance, and calming them down… It was all quite exciting. When the television stations came to my parents, however…" She shook her head. "It suddenly became all about looking good for the camera and making public appearances. It was a commercial thing rather than a job that I enjoyed."

"Is that why you became a Rider?"

"I always wanted to be a Rider. I was a bit worried, though, especially on the first day. I knew that a lot of people recognized me, and were too intimidated to come talk to me. I thought I'd be more of a celebrity than a student, that being a Rider would also be ruined for me." She glanced at Jaune. "I'm really glad you talked to me back then. It set my mind at ease knowing that there were some people who hadn't seen me on TV. And everyone else started opening up to me because of that."

"So, my lack of knowledge finally helped someone!" Jaune laughed. "That's definitely a first." He grinned when this caused Pyrrha to laugh as well. "You know, if you ever get jumped by photographers, I could always distract them." He struck a pose, making her laugh even harder.

The dragons watched their partners curiously. Twiggy chirped, recognizing this sound as a happy one.

Titan tilted his head, noting that his partner seemed to make these happy noises more often when with his sister's partner. He glanced at Twiggy. They needed to make sure that their partners were together as often as possible.

Twiggy bobbed her head in agreement.

…..

Only a few minutes passed in the Team RWBY dorm before the tension became unbearable for everyone. Weiss put down her bag with a huff. "Could someone please tell me what the problem is?"

Blake's eyes flashed. "How about you telling a Faunus how great it is that he had to get screened like some criminal? Or the fact that you did it literal hours after he got attacked by a trio of bigots and unfairly ticketed by the police?"

"He was given a warning because his dragon bit someone enough to make them bleed," Weiss snapped. "He's lucky he wasn't sued."

"So, you think those bullies are in the right?!"

"I didn't say that. I'm just saying he's lucky he wasn't sued. You know how people can be."

"Yeah. I do," Blake said flatly.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "I don't have anything against Faunus, but certain precautions must be taken."

"You basically just said: 'I'm not bigoted, but…'"

"Guys, stop it!" Ruby cut in. "You're scaring the dragons!"

Blake and Weiss glanced toward the divots. Storm was hiding her head in her downy bed, Fang's tail was twitching, Specter was shifting nervously from paw to paw, and Pit's eyes were narrow. The two exchanged guilty looks and tried to calm down.

"Why don't we talk about this calmly?" Ruby continued. "Weiss, why do you think precautions need to be taken against Faunus?"

Weiss sighed and folded her hands. "My family has been targeted by the White Fang ever since it changed leaders. Dust trains have been robbed, company members have been killed…" She took a shuddering breath. "And so was my mother's dragon."

The dorm room was dead silent as Ruby, Blake, and Yang gaped at Weiss.

Blake's mouth opened and closed for a moment. She had never heard anything about this. Wouldn't Adam have mentioned something like that? "How do you know it was them?" she whispered.

Weiss wiped her eyes, still remembering her mother's screams ringing from the barn. "Because they left their mark in her stall. They just came in during the night, killed Snowflake, and burned the White Fang symbol into the door." She shook her head as she thought back to that ugly, smoking brand. "Father replaced most of the Faunus workers. Mother…wasn't the same after that." By that, she meant that her mother was never sober after that day.

Ruby sat down next to Weiss and touched her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Weiss. That must have been horrible."

Yang frowned. "How come it wasn't on the news? Wouldn't Snowflake have been the first ice dragon ever?"

Weiss sighed. "Father didn't want to make a public spectacle of it. He said that was what the White Fang wanted. He bribed all the media outlets to make it seem like she was killed in a flying accident, then quickly swept it under the rug."

Blake clenched her fists, glaring at the ground. _No. That's not what they wanted. They wanted to hurt the Schnees. This wasn't a public statement, but a personal threat._ She knew how Adam worked. He was smarter than others who would simply focus on publicity and being loud. He knew how to be subtle. He knew how to get a person where it hurt the most.

"That is terrible," Blake said aloud, her voice taking on a gentler tone. "But, it's not a reason to mistrust all Faunus. Yes, there are Faunus in the White Fang, but they're a minority. And many who are in the White Fang are there because they're desperate and see no other solution to the prejudice w- they face." She kept her ears stock-still.

Weiss gave Blake a long look. "I…suppose you're right. I was taught from a young age to be wary of all Faunus, because there was always a chance that they could be with the White Fang. As the heiress to the company, I'd be a valuable hostage to them."

"That's true," Blake sighed, half to herself. She had heard of several half-formed plans to kidnap the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. There were also a few members who liked to talk about various unsavory things they'd like to do to her if they ever caught her. Looking at Weiss now, knowing her as a fellow Rider and teammate, memories of that was almost enough to cause Blake to shudder with revulsion.

"However," Weiss continued after a long pause. "I am training to be a Rider now, and am more than capable of looking after myself. Being afraid of an entire group of people won't do me any good. And I do honestly like Sun, even though he can be a bit crude at times." She looked at the others, her eyes taking on an uncharacteristically uncertain shine. "What…What should I do?"

"Apologize," Ruby replied immediately. "Tell Sun what you told us, and say you're sorry. He'll forgive you."

"I know he will," Yang added. "He's one of the most easygoing people I've ever met."

Weiss nodded. "I'll talk with him tomorrow, then." She looked at Blake. "I really am not trying to be offensive. I hope you know that."

Blake felt herself relax as she heard the sincerity in Weiss's tone. "Yeah. I think I do." Just the same, she decided that it would be a good while before Weiss or anyone else learned who she really was. She looked at Pit, who had not shown any other signs of powers since the incident with Twiggy. _I hope I don't end up regretting this whole thing._

….

Sun had been staring at the same page in his textbook for almost a half hour. He didn't realize it until he felt Neptune sitting on the bed next to him.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Neptune asked, trying to keep his voice chipper despite the mood hanging over the room.

Sun managed a wry grin. "Nah. They aren't worth that much."

"Of course they are. Some of them might even be worth a nickel."

"Gee, thanks."

Neptune wrapped an arm around his best friend's shoulder. "You upset by what Weiss said? I can talk to her if you want. I don't think she was trying to be a jerk."

Sun raised an eyebrow. "What exactly was she trying to be, then?"

"She wasn't trying to be anything," Sage said, looking up from his textbook. "She was simply ignorant. There's a difference between ignorance and animosity."

"Go to the hospital, Sage. I think you're puking up a dictionary," Sun grumbled.

Neptune watched Sun's face carefully. His friend was obviously angry about Weiss, but there was an underlying sense of sadness that was coming from some other source. "What else is going on?" he asked.

Sun blinked at him, then shook his head. "Nothing gets past you, does it nerd?"

"Intellectual," Neptune instinctively corrected.

"Whatever." Sun looked toward Huo, who was staring into space. "It's Huo. Ever since that fight, he's been really unresponsive."

Neptune frowned. "Yeah, you're right. Isn't it good that he's not biting you, though?"

"It's not that he likes me more, though. At least I don't think it is," Sun explained. "He's just more distant. I feel like I somehow let him down by not fighting those thugs off or standing up for him better."

"Sun, there's nothing you could've done!" Neptune said. "I mean, nothing that wouldn't have gotten you arrested or something."

"I know, just…" Sun ran his fingers through his hair, groaning in agitation. "It just feels like things keep getting worse. I'm sore and tired all over, and now there's this bullshit to deal with. I don't know if I can do it." He hated being so weak. If his team had been made up of anyone but his three closest friends, he wouldn't have said a word.

"Okay, that's it." Scarlet strode over, sat down on Sun's other side, and pulled him into a hug. "Sun, you're doing fine. This is just a way of getting stronger. You're our leader and our friend. We have total faith in you. Right, guys?"

"Totally!" Neptune replied, secretly jealous that he hadn't thought to hug Sun first.

"Absolutely," Sage said, nodding firmly. "And Huo believes in you as well. You'll get past this, and we'll help you."

Sun slumped against Scarlet, deciding to let him bear his weight for a few minutes. He felt Neptune touch his hand and gently squeezed his best friend's fingertips. When he looked toward the divots again, he saw that Huo was looking at him. The dragon's gray eyes were unreadable, as usual.

 **I keep saying this, but I'm super happy that I can actually delve into the characters here. In canon, we got to hear why Weiss didn't trust the Faunus, but we never saw her go through the process of overcoming her prejudices. My theory is that she has nothing against Faunus on their own, but is more afraid of the White Fang and the uncertainty of being a Schnee when interacting with a Faunus. Also, we get to see the beginning of the dragons shipping their partners. That will absolutely be a thing throughout this fic!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	29. Apologies

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! The good news is that I've started the backlog for "Five Summers," along with my fanfiction-writing blog. The bad news is that I got my first rejection email from a potential agent. An email consisting of one sentence. An email sent from an iPad. *sigh* And so it begins.**

 **Anyway, the dragon spotlight this week goes to Hookfang from the** _ **How to Train Your Dragon**_ **movie and TV series. While I adore Toothless, I like Hookfang's design and abilities even more. Also, there was an episode of** _ **DreamWorks Dragons**_ **that focused on his relationship with Snotlout and had him give up on a potential cure to the sickness he was suffering from in order to save Snotlout from an attacking dragon. I knew he wouldn't die, since he was going to be in the second movie, but I was still in tears. Suffering dragons do that to me.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Professor Port was very impressed when he learned that Huo's elemental powers were starting to show, and decided to make a quick example of the pair during elemental training. "Fire dragons, besides having terrible tempers, also have obviously destructive powers. Therefore, it is vital that you learn how to control those powers as quickly as possible. Mister Wukong."

"Yes, sir?" Sun stood up a little taller, his flicking tail showing his nervousness. He really didn't want to fail with Huo in front of everyone.

"Commanding a dragon's power is difficult, but it can be done. Since Huo first showed signs of power through his scales, it's harder to signal out a command than it is for something like moving forward or attacking." Port paced back and forth in front of the class. "You are familiar with the battle stance command, of course. Can anyone tell me how the battle stance is taught?"

Pyrrha raised her hand. "You train them while they're at play. Whenever they prepare to get into a brawl, you say 'battle stance' and praise them. Since dragonets learn language quickly, they are able to associate your words with the action without trouble and will then follow the command."

"Exactly!" Port beamed. "Dragons, especially young ones, learn the meaning of language very quickly, even though they can't speak yet. Therefore, miming or making them feel a certain way while practicing a command is all you need to do. For example," He pointed at Huo. "If you rapidly rub your dragon's scales, they will grow warmer. Give the command 'heat' while rubbing. Your dragon will want to ignite his scales when you rub them like that. When he does, reward him. Give it a try, Mister Wukong."

Sun gulped audibly, mentally preparing himself for the bite he would probably receive. However, when he knelt down, he saw that Huo was still looking a bit distant. That was almost worse.

"Okay, Huo. Heat." He started rubbing Huo's back beneath his wing.

Huo jumped at the strange, rapid contact, blinking at his partner in confusion. Why was he rubbing his scales like that? Was something on them?

"Huo, heat," Sun repeated.

Huo sighed. His partner was using his commanding tone. This was a new order he had to learn. Okay, so what did "heat" mean? His scales were starting to feel warmer. The rubbing was getting irritating. Growling, he decided to warm up his scales a bit to make Sun stop.

Sun felt the heat and quickly withdrew his hand. "Good boy!" He fed Huo a treat, feeling almost disappointed when his hand wasn't snapped. This just didn't feel right.

Huo chewed the treat slowly. Sun was going back to commanding him, as if nothing had happened. He couldn't stop thinking about those humans and the fact that Sun had stopped him from attacking them, had acted like he was the one needing protecting. Rather than being angry, he was curious beyond belief.

Nymph had told him that putting Sun on guard all the time was a bad idea. Was there something about fighting that his own instincts weren't telling him?

"Very good." Port clapped his hands. "As for the rest of you, I want to see ten minutes at least of practicing the heat command. Do as I taught you. Let's see if we have any more emerging powers."

Yang smiled as she knelt beside Fang. "Good thing you aren't being a little shit anymore, huh?" She rubbed Fang's back. "Okay, he- Ow!" Her eyebrow twitched. Fang had turned around and bitten down on her arm. Now, he was holding on and looking at her with a decidedly smug expression. "You are an asshole," she said bluntly.

Pyrrha tried not to laugh. "I think he's starting to understand what you're calling him."

"He does not! Right, you dumb salamander?"

Fang bit down a little harder, growling quietly.

Yang winced. "Okay, fine. Can you let go of me, _your highness_?" When Fang let go and turned away, she threw her hands in the air. "You have got to be kidding me!" When Sun walked over, she waved to him. "Hey, Sun. Look for Weiss after class, okay?"

"Uh, why?"

"She wants to apologize," Yang explained. "She looked for you this morning."

"Really?" Sun's brows went up. _An apology from the ice queen? Should I record it…? Nah._ "Okay. I'll look for her." He sat down next to Huo. "Seriously dude, could you at least nip my tail so I know you're still coherent?"

"What's wrong?" Pyrrha asked. "Isn't it good that he's not biting you?"

"I think he's in shock or mad at me or something," Sun muttered. "He's been like this since the fight with those bigots."

"Why don't you ask Professor Port about it? It could be a behavioral thing for certain fire dragons."

Sun sighed as he stood up. "I guess it couldn't hurt." He walked toward Port, Huo trudging after him.

"Heat. Heat!" a voice said nearby.

Pyrrha and Yang turned to see Dove rubbing Tank's back. The fire dragon looked like he was falling asleep.

"Come on, Tank. Heat." Dove groaned when the bronze dragonet started to snore. "You can sleep after class, okay? Just stay awake for a bit longer."

Pyrrha hesitated before walking over. "You need to rub faster. If you do it like that, his scales won't warm up."

Dove jumped, which startled Tank awake. The small dragon noticed Titan and whimpered, hiding behind his partner. Even that short retreat was enough to cause him to trip on his paws.

Titan gave him a disparaging look and let out a yawn.

"He's a bit skittish," Pyrrha noted. "And lethargic. Does he have trouble sleeping?"

"I, uh…" Dove was staring fixedly at the ground. "Barracuda and Tornado give him a hard time," he murmured. "He has to sleep with me, but we both kick each other, so…" He gasped when he realized what he had said. "Uh, don't tell anyone, please! I know dragons aren't allowed on the beds, but…"

"I won't," Pyrrha promised, though her brows were furrowed with concern. "What will you do when it's time to move him?"

"I mean, he won't be next to Barracuda and Tornado anymore, so it should be okay." Dove shrugged. "Mudslide protects him sometimes, but she can't follow him everywhere."

"Is Mudslide the alpha dragon, then?" Pyrrha remembered that Barracuda had been the first one to attack during their fight. She and Tornado seemed to be the most vicious. Mudslide was angry, but reluctant. Tank honestly made Pyrrha think of Zircon. All she could really tell was that Tank wasn't the alpha.

"I…don't know." Dove shook his head. "Barracuda and Tornado fight a lot. Mudslide just sits in her bed when she's not protecting Tank."

"I see." _The siblings fight, they don't have a definite alpha, and the fire dragon is the skittish one of the group. This team is more dysfunctional than I thought._ "You should speak to Ozpin about it."

Dove sighed. "Cardin and the others would just make things worse. I'm just gonna wait till summer, then see if I can get transferred to Mistral or Atlas or something."

"You might not have to transfer," Pyrrha noted. "It's possible to train as an independent Rider."

"After my second year."

"Not necessarily. I've heard of people starting earlier. Considering the circumstances, I feel that Ozpin would want to help you."

Dove snorted. "Yeah. My team's kinda famous at this point, huh?" He finally looked up at Pyrrha. "Sorry they attacked you guys. Tornado has a nasty bite. Is your teammate okay?"

"She's recovering. The main issue is keeping her from running on it." She noticed Port glaring in their direction. "We'd better get back to work. Thank you for apologizing. If you ever want to spend time with us, I promise that our dragons won't hurt Tank."

At this, a hesitant smile came to Dove's face. "I'll remember that. Thanks, Nikos. You're pretty cool."

Pyrrha smiled kindly at him before returning to Yang, who was giving her a curious look. "What is it?"

"You are unrealistically nice," Yang said bluntly.

"Is that a bad thing?"

"No, just…" Yang shook her head, glancing at Dove. "Don't let anyone take advantage of that, okay? I already worry about Ruby."

Pyrrha's heart warmed at her friend's concern. "I won't. I'm a good judge of character. Dove isn't a bully, just a bystander who needs some encouragement."

"If you're sure." Yang started rubbing Fang's scales again. "Okay, buddy. Heat."

While this was going on, Sun had approached Professor Port. "Uh, sir? Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Mister Wukong." Port turned promptly around to face him. "What can I assist you with?"

"Well, I'm worried about Huo," Sun explained. "We had a bit of a…run in with some thugs, and he hasn't been the same since."

Port grunted sharply. "Was he injured?"

"No, I checked him when we got back." Sun explained what had happened and told the professor how Huo's behavior had changed. "And, I'm not sure what to do. I wanted him to stop biting me, but this somehow feels worse."

Port was scratching his chin. "Hm. It's hard to say. It could be that he was surprised by the shock of a real fight, though considering how quickly he recovered after that one scrap with Fang, that's probably not it." He paced back and forth. "He could have suffered head trauma, though…" He knelt and looked at Huo's eyes. "Doesn't look like it. It looks more like he's deep in thought." He stood up again. "When exactly did he start mellowing?"

"After the cops left," Sun replied. "Wait, no… He kinda went limp while the cops were questioning the others."

"After you restrained him?"

"Yeah."

"Ah." Port nodded, his face lightening as he realized the problem. "Your dragon is simply trying to piece together what happened." He looked at the gray eyes again. "I have seen this look before. Pepper has had it many times. The first time it happened was after I scolded her for catching and trying to eat a stray cat. Dragons often don't understand the intricacies of society. For Huo, my guess is that he is confused as to why he wasn't allowed to finish off three people who clearly were trying to hurt the both of you. He'll ponder for a while, then go back to normal. Once you get more of a sense of understanding concerning commands and different situations, this will be easier."

"Was the cat okay?" Sun couldn't help but ask.

"What-?" Port let out a laugh. "Oh, yes. A bit terrified, but fine." He patted Sun's shoulder. "Don't lose hope, son. You and Huo are quite a standard pair if I've ever seen one. You're doing everything right."

Sun felt a grin coming to his face for the first time that day. "Thanks, sir."

"My pleasure. Now, back to work!" He shot a glare toward Pyrrha and Dove. "All of us!"

….

Weiss walked right toward the fire arena after class, going at a brisk pace that required Specter to jog to keep up. She ignored his annoyed whistles as she looked for any sign of Sun or Huo. Neptune had told her that Sun would almost definitely forgive her, but she was still nervous.

Ever since her talk with her team last night, an uncomfortable feeling of guilt and self-loathing had started to rise within her. She couldn't help but think about how she had callously treated Faunus servants in the past, about how rude she had been to Rusty the stable hand, about her tendency to think words like "riff-raff" or "ruffian" when passing a Faunus on the sidewalk.

She had always thought that she was better than her father and brother, that her way of thinking was more progressive. After seeing Sun's hurt expression and feeling Blake's stinging disapproval, it was clear that the gulf between her and her family's reputation wasn't as large as she would have hoped.

When Sun came out of the arena with Yang and Pyrrha, Weiss's back stiffened and she wondered how exactly to approach this. It turned out that she didn't have to worry, since Sun made a beeline for her once he saw her.

"Yo, Weiss," Sun called. Her guilty expression was painful to look at, so he decided to let her get this over with as soon as possible. "Yang said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes." Weiss cleared her throat. "I…was out of line yesterday. I was very insensitive, considering the circumstances, and wanted to apologize."

Sun shrugged a shoulder casually. "Eh. It's cool. I figured you didn't mean it."

"No, I did," Weiss said, her voice becoming strained. "That's the problem." She looked downward. "I was taught to be wary of all Faunus, because of my family's feud with the White Fang. I had to be suspicious because my father was convinced that they would try to use me as a hostage if they caught me. Due to that, I developed a negative view of Faunus."

She looked back at Sun, relieved to see that he was listening and didn't look angry. "I do not hate them on principle. I honestly do not care if someone has a tail, an extra set of ears, horns, or claws. That doesn't faze me."

Sun grinned in what he hoped was a comforting way. "Hey, that puts you ahead of basically all of the bigots who think we're nothing but animals."

"I'd rather be further ahead of people like that. I know that my views need to change, and will work to change them." Weiss took a breath before saying: "They won't change overnight, though. I hope that you will be patient with me in the meantime. You are a friend I would like to keep." By the time she was done speaking, her voice was shaking and her cheeks were red with embarrassment at how much she had revealed.

 _Crap! She's about to cry,_ Sun realized. He quickly moved forward, pulling Weiss into a hug. "You got it, Ice Queen!" He felt her stiffen and loosened his grip a little. "You okay?"

"Yes, I…" Weiss hated how she was shaking. "I'm just not used to…" She looped an arm loosely around Sun's waist. "Thank you."

"No prob," Sun replied, smiling brightly even though his mind was reeling. _Has this girl never received a hug in her life?! I kinda want to punch her dad in the face right now._ He squeezed her once, then stepped back. "Come on, let's see a smile."

Weiss hurriedly wiped her eyes and returned Sun's smile. "I appreciate your understanding, Sun," she said, trying to regain her usual, formal tone of voice. "And, if you want, I can lend you my pepper spray the next time you go into town alone."

Sun snorted. "Pepper spray? Please. Punching them in the face is way more fun."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Aim for the groin if you must go that route. That'll incapacitate them more."

"Really? I had no clue!" Sun gasped. "Hey, Nep!" he called to Neptune, who had been standing nearby for the past few minutes. "Did you know kicking a dude in the groin freaking hurts?"

Neptune widened his eyes comically. "No! Weiss, please tell me more!"

This was enough to make Weiss recover her usual attitude, and she fixed them both with a dry glare. "Why did you bother becoming Dragon Riders? Clearly, you're just a pair of two-bit comedians."

"I used to think about going into comedy," Yang commented.

"And the entire world is grateful that you decided not to," Sun finished.

"What was that?!"

"Eep! Neptune, hide me!"

"No way, dude! I'm not getting involved!"

"Traitor!" Sun crouched down behind Huo. "I'm just a simple, handsome Fire Rider. Don't hurt me!"

Huo looked at his partner. He was hiding behind him, but didn't smell of fear. He looked at Yang, then finally at his rival, Fang. He met the other dragon's eyes and shook his head slowly. What was wrong with their partners?

Fang huffed and flicked his tail. Honestly, he had decided to just go with the flow and figure things out as he grew older.

Huo bobbed his head once and sighed. He thought about asking Nymph for advice, but decided against it. His sister didn't need to be any more self-satisfied than she already was.

 **Yet another relationship I wish had been more explored in canon was the friendship that could have developed between Sun and Weiss. The few times they interacted on screen were freaking hilarious! ("I climb trees all the time!") I can see Sun mellowing Weiss out with his chill attitude and Weiss becoming almost like an irritable second mother to him as they grow closer. And, of course, there's the chance to show Weiss actually overcoming her prejudices instead of them just vanishing after one episode.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **If you want fanfiction advice, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom-related rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	30. Moving Day

**Rawr, everybody! Happy Dragon Tuesday! This week sees our dragons beginning to grow up a bit.**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Remy from** _ **Angels with Scaly Wings,**_ **a dragon visual novel dating sim. (Yeah, that's right. Don't judge!) Remy is probably my favorite romance route out of the four. He's an adorable white dragon with spectacles and a tie, and is the first dragon you meet when your character goes through the portal to their world. I won't explain the whole game, since that would take several pages, but I do recommend it. Warning: There are MANY feels, especially in Remy and Anna's routes.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

"Isn't this nice, girl?" Ruby asked, patting Storm on the nose as she led her into one of many reinforced stone shelters that sat on the other side of the freshman dorm building. It was about half the size of the team's room. At the moment, it was a relatively-spacious sleeping area for the now pony-sized dragon. By the end of the semester, however, it would be just a little tight.

Storm sniffed curiously at the strange room Ruby was leading her into. It seemed nice enough. She spotted a large bed that was covered with a soft-looking material. The other side had bowls that smelled like food. There was a larger litter box set off to one side. Overall, it looked very habitable.

Though, there was something wrong: Where was her partner's bed?

Ruby checked the large bowls, grateful that the stable hands had filled them with dry dragon food and water. Of course, it would be her responsibility to keep them full and to change the litter. Then, next semester, she would be filling troughs with food and using a shovel to clean up. Having grown up in a broodery, she was used to that. She wondered how the other Riders would adjust.

Blake, meanwhile, was letting out a sigh of relief as she led Pit into his new home. She had ultimately decided to wait and move him into an outdoor shelter at the same time as the others, as it would keep him at her side a bit longer and keep the other dragons from getting confused. She was glad it was today. Pit had started spilling out of his bed in the dorm room and was just on the edge of not being able to fit through doorways.

The stall was pretty basic. There were few differences between it and the others. The stalls for the fire dragons were pure stone, and the water stalls had a few misting machines, but they were otherwise the same.

Pit looked around, noticing the bed immediately. He padded over and curled up, sighing happily at how large it was. This was perfect! He could actually roll around in this bed!

Fang was chewing thoughtfully on his rubber bear, which no longer resembled a bear in the slightest. He wasn't sure if he wanted to go into this building. The others had gone in willingly enough, but something weird was going on.

Yang groaned. "Come on! It's fine. You're getting your own room. Isn't that great?"

Fang flicked an ear. He thought about snapping, but realized that doing so would likely injure his partner. His jaws were definitely bigger than they used to be. Letting out a sigh, he slowly trudged into the building.

Specter was also refusing to go into his stall. He sat on his haunches, chin up, head frills twitching with irritation. He could smell an apple in Weiss's bag, and figured that it was unfair to ask him to go into any unfamiliar establishments until he got it.

"Specter, inside!" Weiss said, pointing in the doorway and snapping her fingers. "In!"

Specter huffed, licking his teeth pointedly.

"You can have the apple once you listen to me. In!"

The ice dragon tossed his head and walked at an exaggerated slow pace. As he passed Weiss, he suddenly turned and touched his chilled tongue to the side of her neck.

"EEK!" Weiss squealed, falling backward. She glared at her dragon from the ground. "That was not funny!"

Blake popped her head out of Pit's stall. "I gotta disagree. Good boy, Specter!"

Specter whistled cheerfully and trotted into his stall without further resistance.

"You little- Yang!" Weiss called. "Fang's teaching Specter bad habits!"

"Hey, don't blame Fang! Your dragon's just a diva."

"Like dragon, like Rider," Blake mused.

"Does that mean Pit enjoys reading perverted books?" Weiss asked, her eyes glittering as she stood up and dusted herself off.

Blake went noticeably pale. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Yang grinned. " _I_ want to know what you're talking about!"

Ruby peeked her head out of Storm's stall. "What about books?"

"Nothing!" the others quickly replied.

….

Twiggy nuzzled Jaune's arm as he fed her a fresh apple. Then, she set about sniffing the ground and walls of this new room she was in. There was food for her, which was good. There was a large bed, which she liked. What she didn't like was the smell. It was too empty, as if nothing had lived here for a long time, or as if all traces of them had been wiped away. The room she shared with her siblings and partner smelled of all of them.

"You'll be okay, girl," Jaune assured her, patting her shoulder. "The others will be close, so you can talk to them. And this will only be for at night and during indoor classes. You'll be with me at the arena classes and when I'm walking around. You'll be just fine."

Twiggy walked over to the bed and curled up, snuffling at the new cloth. Would she be sharing this room with her partner only? That would be nice. She barked out the window, relieved when she heard Titan barking back.

"This is the next step toward being all grown up and independent," Jaune said, sitting down next to Twiggy. He knew that she couldn't understand full, complex sentences yet, but he still liked talking to her. It seemed to calm her down. "Once you move to the earth stables next semester, you'll be able to have free run of the pastures and mud pits. Won't that be fun? This is like the in-between stage."

There were benefits for the Riders as well, of course. Jaune definitely liked the idea of having free evenings again. He and Pyrrha had gone to the _Red vs. Blue_ movie a few days ago, and it had been amazing. She had even enjoyed the marathon he made her sit through beforehand! It would be cool if they could go somewhere else soon.

Titan walked calmly into his stall when Pyrrha asked him to. He took a few bites of food from one of the bowls, noticing that it seemed fixed to the ground, unlike their bowls in the shared room. He could feel a pleasant breeze from the windows, which had hinges on them, allowing them to be opened or closed at will. He experimentally pressed his snout against one, snapping it shut easily. He nudged the edge, pulling it back out again.

Pyrrha watched her dragon, smiling at how easily he was adjusting. "Found the windows, did you?" She looked at the bed, which was made with flame-resistant cloth. Not that it would matter for Titan, who hadn't shown even a sign of smoke coming from his nostrils yet.

She was a little relieved that her dragon was a late bloomer in the same way she had been relieved when he had bitten her that one time. Though she tried not to let it bother her when people referred to her dragon as "perfect," she couldn't help but wonder if Titan really was a textbook dragon with hardly any personality.

There were signs of something going on in his mind, like his ferocity when defending Twiggy. Still, even now, Pyrrha had a hard time reading him. She thought he was happy and that he liked her, but couldn't tell much beyond that.

 _Maybe, he'll show more of a personality when he gets older,_ she thought.

A loud thump in the next building over caused her to chuckle. Some dragons had a little too much personality.

"Guang, settle!" Ren yelped, jumping out of the way as his dragon ran past him for the third time and jumped onto his new bed. "Careful!"

Ao Guang rolled around on the cloth, yipping and whimpering with excitement. This bed was so huge! And so bouncy! He ran back to the food dishes to go again.

"Guang, stop!" Ren moved to stand in front of his dragon, who barely skidded to a halt in time to keep from knocking him over. "Good boy." He patted Ao Guang's head and gave him an apple. "I'll exercise you before settling you in for the night, but that bed is for sleeping!"

Guang chomped on his apple, his tail thumping against the ground. His partner could be a killjoy, but at least he didn't skimp on the apples.

Nora, meanwhile, was staring at her sleeping dragon with a bemused expression. "Seriously?"

Freya, upon seeing her new bed, had immediately curled up and fallen asleep without even looking at anything else. Loud, deep breaths and the occasional snore could be heard.

Nora shook her head. "You are such a lazy-butt!" She placed an apple in the food dish and walked out, closing the door behind her. "Guys, Freya fell asleep right away."

"That's good," Pyrrha commented.

"No, it's not! I'm bored! Ren, what's Guang doing?"

Thump! Crash!

"I think I'll hang out with you guys until we're done." Nora skipped over to Ao Guang's stall, opening the door to see a very happy dragon bouncing on the bed and a very irritable, disheveled Ren lying on the floor.

….

"Hey, check out these misters." Neptune pressed a button, which caused a fine mist to come from the ceiling in the middle of the room, not near the food or bed. "This is cool!"

Nymph tilted her head and tried pressing the button, chirping happily at the moistness that followed. This was fun. She looked at the bed, then at the food dishes. Was this where she would be sleeping from now on?

"Good girl," Neptune laughed, shaking his hair out. _Why can't this be all the water we need to deal with?_ he couldn't help but wonder. "Hey, Sun! How's Badass liking his new home?" he called out the window.

"Hrk. He's been happier," Sun gritted from where he was pinned beneath Huo's front paws. As soon as he had referred to this stall as his dragon's new home, he had been knocked over and subjected to an angry gray glare. At least the fire dragon wasn't heating up his scales. Yet.

"Come on, buddy," Sun urged. "This is a nice place. And it's only temporary anyway. You know you can't be in the room anymore."

Huo growled, his eyes blazing. How dare his partner try to place him in some random building and leave him there?

"Ow! Freaking claws… Look, dude. If you'd stayed in our room, you would've just kept growing. You all would've hit each other with your wings and that would've just been annoying, you know? Then, you would've just grown until you got crushed. Is that what you want?"

Huo snarled. His partner was being stupid. How were they supposed to protect each other while separated?

"Need help over there?" Scarlet called. "You're not dying, right?"

"I'll let you know," Sun groaned.

"Kay!" Scarlet turned back to Nimbus, who was blowing bubbles in his new water dish. "Having fun, pal?"

Nimbus snorted, which caused him to inhale water, and proceeded to start coughing loudly.

Scarlet rolled his eyes. "Ho boy…"

Sage was trying to get to the door without being immediately grabbed and pulled back by Zircon's paws. "Zircon, I need to go," he said, keeping his voice firm. "You will be fine." He had already put several of his shirts on the bed, so that Zircon would have his scent when he went to sleep. "I promise that you're safe.

Zircon hugged Sage against his chest, keening loudly. He didn't want to be all alone in the building! He could hear his brothers and sister, but that wasn't enough! They were too far and through more walls! What if it rained? What if there was lightning?

"Ow! Zircon, claws!" Sage yelped when he felt scratches on his chest.

Zircon whimpered as he withdrew his claws, but didn't let go. He didn't like anything about this. He needed his partner, or he wouldn't be safe.

Sage managed to turn around in his dragon's grip. "Zircon, listen to me. You are strong enough to be here without me. You are an earth dragon bred and raised at the greatest Dragonry in all of Remnant. You can handle anything."

Zircon blinked, loosening his claws a little. He understood some words like his name and "strong." What was his partner telling him?

"You need to let me go," Sage continued. "I'll be back tomorrow. I promise."

Tomorrow. Zircon knew that word. Did that mean…he only needed to do this until tomorrow? He slowly loosened his grip.

Sage beamed proudly as he felt his dragon putting him down. "Good boy!" He patted Zircon's nose. "You're going to be fine. I'll see you tomorrow. Be brave." He stepped through the door, glancing back once at Zircon's nervous face and darting eyes, then closed it behind him.

Neptune was already outside of Nymph's stall. "Dude, are you crying?" he asked, keeping his voice hushed.

Sage wiped his eyes. "I'm fine. It's good that Nymph's stall is next to his. She can calm him down if he gets too nervous."

Sun, meanwhile, was trying to shift from under Huo, who was now lying on top of him. "Dude…heavy…breathing…not…" he wheezed.

Neptune peeked in and gasped. "Oh no. Sun, need any help?"

"Yes…please…"

Huo opened an eye as Neptune entered, and snapped angrily in his direction, causing the boy to yelp and jump back. Pathetic.

Sun groaned. He couldn't breathe, his chest was all scratched, and he had had it. Clenching a fist, he brought his hand up to give Huo the hardest bop to the nose he had given him yet.

Huo yelped in pain and surprise, jumping back and rubbing his snout with his paws. That hurt! He was torn between wanting to maul his partner and feeling immensely relieved that he could actually hit.

Sun stood up, dusting himself off before pointing a finger at his dragon. "Okay. Listen here, you little asshole. I've had it! I'm done with you switching between angry lunatic and mopey teenager! You're going to be a grown-ass dragon in a few months, and it's time to start acting like it! You are going to stay in this stall, and you are not going to give me any more bullshit! I'm going to come back tomorrow, and we are going to keep working to become actual freaking partners. You got that?!"

Huo actually had to take a step back during Sun's tirade. His eyes were wide and he was utterly stunned. His partner actually had a backbone. He could roar as well as any dragon. Perhaps, that disastrous fight before had taught him something after all. If that was the case, he could probably go a night without Huo's protection.

Nodding and letting out a satisfied snort, the fire dragon padded over to his bed and curled up.

There was a moment of stunned silence. Neptune was the first to speak. "I will never tick you off for as long as I live."

Sun blinked. He actually felt a little lightheaded after that. "Phew. That was a rush." He turned and grinned at Neptune. "I guess Port was right about him needing a firm hand." He smiled at the now-dozing Huo and led his friend out of the stall.

Scarlet and Sage were waiting, and Scarlet's eyes were wide. "That was scary!"

"Yeah, no kidding," Sun laughed. "I hope he never makes me do that again."

Teams RWBY and JNPR were approaching. Ruby's hands were over her ears as Storm's howls echoed behind her. "I left like half of my clothes with her!"

Weiss sighed. "I tried singing to her, but nothing worked."

"Ozpin did say that the first night would be hard," Blake pointed out. "We just need to stay firm."

"You know…" Yang murmured, a grin coming to her face. "I just realized something. With the stalls, we can actually all be free at the same time. I know this club in town…"

"We're in!" Nora chirped.

Ren groaned, but didn't say anything.

Ruby frowned. "Should we really be celebrating while our dragons are adjusting?"

"Why not?" Neptune shrugged. "It's something they have to go through anyway, and we're not supposed to visit the stalls for the first few nights. It won't make a difference to them whether we're in the dorms or somewhere else."

"As always, the nerd is right," Sun declared. "I'm in."

"Intellectual!"

"Shut up, nerd," Scarlet scoffed. "I'll go too."

In the end, everyone agreed to meet up Saturday night. After all that had gone on so far this semester, a bit of harmless fun would definitely be nice. Still, as they walked away from the stalls, they couldn't help glancing over their shoulders, hoping their dragons would be okay until morning.

 **A bit of dancing. A bit of clubbing. What could go wrong?**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **If you'd like to see writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	31. Junior's Club

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everybody! Tonight, our favorite teams go clubbing. What could possibly happen, I wonder?**

 **This week's dragon spotlight goes to Norberta from the** _ **Harry Potter**_ **series. Originally named Norbert, this dragon appears in** _ **Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone**_ **as a temporary pet to Rubeus Hagrid. She's a Norwegian Ridgeback and is shown to be incredibly vicious, making it necessary for Hagrid to give her up and send her to Romania, where she is cared for by Charlie Weasley. Charlie later tells Hagrid that Norbert is now called Norberta, citing her ferocity as a telltale sign of being female.**

 **Enjoy!**

The adjustment period for the newly-rehomed dragons varied. Dragons like Pit, Titan, and Nymph were able to adapt relatively quickly to their new quarters, sleeping peacefully on the first night and greeting their partners the following morning. Others, like Huo and Fang, were furious with their partners when they returned and made sure to show it. Their anger simmered lower and lower over time, as they realized that their new homes were nice and spacious, and that their partners always came for them promptly in the morning. There were some who, while concerned in the evenings, were able to get some rest eventually.

Zircon and Storm, however, fought this new change every step of the way. They would resist going into their stalls, making the use of halters and lead ropes, along with the cooperation of several other Riders, necessary. Then, they wouldn't let their Riders leave for several minutes. Both Ruby and Sage developed a nightly ritual of pep talks, scale stroking, and making sure their scents were strong in the stalls.

Occasionally, Weiss would help by singing the dragons to sleep. They all seemed to enjoy the sound of her voice, and would calm down, at least a little, when she hummed to them.

This was the case on Saturday evening, when she hummed to Storm, Zircon, and Twiggy to get them to go to sleep. The group left quietly, hoping that the dragons wouldn't reawaken.

"You're really good at that, Weiss," Ruby commented, still feeling guilty that she was getting ready to go clubbing while her dragon was still adjusting to her new settings. "Maybe we should leave recordings in the stalls."

"I think that would take away from making them more independent," Weiss noted. "But, thank you."

"I wonder if I should start playing guitar again." Jaune glanced over his shoulder at the stalls as they walked. "If the dragons like music, I could maybe play for them sometimes."

"You play guitar?" Pyrrha asked.

"Yep! I left it at home when I came to Beacon," Jaune explained. "I figured there wouldn't really be time to practice. Maybe I'll get my parents to send it up after all."

"You should. I'd love to hear you play."

"Ooh!" Nora gasped. "What if Jaune got really good at the guitar and played for Weiss? You could make a fortune selling dragon-calming CDs!"

Weiss coughed uncomfortably. "I…don't particularly want to market my singing."

"Because you like doing it just for fun?" Ruby guessed.

"Something like that, yes."

The group separated in order to change into clean outfits for the night, then met up in the courtyard. Jaune and Neptune decided to ditch their hoodie and jacket in favor of plain black tee shirts. Ruby, after some consideration, had left behind her red cloak. Scarlet had done the same with his cape. "Taking it off with a flair would look cool for, like, a second," he said. "But after that, I'll spend the whole night worrying about it getting stolen or trampled."

Yang, Sun, Nora, Scarlet, and Jaune were the most enthusiastic. Ruby was a little nervous about how many people would be there, but was quickly reassured that she'd be able to dance at the edge of the floor away from the larger groups.

"Fine, but if anyone tries grinding on me, I'm leaving!"

"Sis, if anyone tries grinding on you, they'll be going home in a body bag."

The club was loud and lively, with a theme of darkness punctuated with neon and bright red lights. A DJ wearing an exaggerated dragon mask overlooked everyone on the dance floor, which seemed to be pulsing with energy. The smells of conditioned air, sweat, and fruity scent mists combined in a strangely-exhilarating mix.

"No one carded us," Sun noted. "What's up with that? Don't night clubs usually card people and draw on people's hands if they aren't twenty one?"

"Junior's really lax about that kind of thing," Yang explained. "You can basically order anything at the bar, as long as you look old enough."

"If anyone even thinks of buying alcohol, I'm leaving," Weiss declared. "And I'm not sure being in a place with rules like that is a good idea."

"Loosen up, Ice Queen," Sun said, slapping her shoulder. "Take a walk on the wild side."

"Yeah, and don't worry," Yang added. "The cops only busted this place three times."

Weiss's brows shot up and her mouth dropped open. "Excuse me?!"

"Kidding!" Yang laughed. "Junior's too smart for that to happen. Just relax."

Weiss looked around, glanced at her friends' hopeful faces, and sighed. "Fine, but you are forbidden from picking our destination in the future."

Yang led them to some tables before walking confidently toward the bar. "Hey, Junior! I see you're running the bar tonight." she called. "Miss me?"

The man behind the bar scowled. "You'd better stay on that side, blondie."

"Aw, now my feelings are hurt," Yang laughed. "Don't worry. I'm just having a night out with my friends."

Ruby looked over, noticing Junior's wary expression. "Yang, don't tell me you got into a fight here."

"She could, but she'd be lying," Junior huffed.

"It wasn't a big thing, and I paid for the damages." Yang shrugged. "Just don't say anything to Dad, kay?"

Ruby's eyes widened. "Wait, that part-time job you took last fall… You were at that for over half a year! What kind of fight was this?!"

"It's better you don't know, kiddo," Junior muttered. "So, what am I getting everyone?"

"I'll take a Strawberry Sunrise." Yang grinned, as if sharing some kind of inside joke that Junior was _not_ enjoying. "And send a pitcher of water to our table. We're gonna be dancing."

"Wow. You'll actually be using the dance floor for what it's meant for," Junior drawled. "Is it my birthday?"

Sun stared at Yang as she returned with her drink. "I'm sensing a story here, and I _really_ want to know what it is!"

"Maybe some other time. And yes Weiss, this is a non-alcoholic beverage, so stop giving me that look." Yang took a sip of her Strawberry Sunrise, then set it on the table. "So, who's ready to dance?"

"Yang, you shouldn't leave a drink unattended in a club like this," Weiss warned.

"Ugh. It's like Dad's here," Yang groaned. Still, she downed the drink before making her way toward the dance floor.

Sun followed immediately, his tail whipping back and forth with excitement. "This is a sick beat."

Yang rolled her eyes. "Please don't try sounding hip. That's what gets you punched in the face in places like this."

Neptune watched as Sun started dancing with Yang, and his heart sank a little. _Great. How can I compete with that?!_

Scarlet noticed Neptune's expression. _Poor guy. He always gets nervous about dancing around people._ "Hey, don't worry," he urged. "No one will laugh. Why don't you ask Weiss for a dance?"

"Uh…" Neptune shook his head. "I think I'll just sit here for a bit. You go ahead."

After a few more attempts to get Neptune to move, Sage and Scarlet eventually gave up and joined Sun and Yang. Nora, meanwhile, had dragged Ren onto the floor, where he was dancing surprisingly well.

No one, however, could outmatch Jaune and Pyrrha. Pyrrha was stunned at just how good of a dancer Jaune was, but found that it was relatively easy to follow his movements. His bright grin and easy laugh were incredibly contagious.

Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Neptune ended up sitting together, thinking about joining their friends but ultimately deciding to stay put.

"This kind of dancing isn't really for me," Weiss said. "And it's a bit loud."

"What?" Ruby asked.

"I said it's a bit loud." 

"WHAT?" Ruby shouted.

Weiss opened her mouth to answer again, then groaned. "Don't be immature, you dolt."

Ruby giggled.

Blake smiled at the two, but stiffened when a soft noise caught her attention. She waited to hear it again.

"Psst!"

She looked over her shoulder to see Junior looking intently at her from the bar. Feigning thirst, she approached and sat on a bar stool. "What is it?"

Junior set about pouring some root beer into a glass. "Someone's looking for you, kitty-cat," he muttered.

Blake's heart pounded and she felt light-headed for a moment. She shook her head to clear it and leaned closer. "Who?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.

"Some bull-horned White Fang creep," Junior replied, sliding the root beer over. "Didn't like the look of him."

"When was he here?"

"Not too long ago. Don't ask me too much. I could get in a lot of trouble for blabbing about him," Junior warned. "He wouldn't give a damn if I had some sort of 'accident.'"

"Why are you telling me this?" Blake asked, trying to keep her ears from flattening under her bow.

"Because you're Yang's friend, and I actually do like the girl." Junior shrugged. "Besides, you all seem like nice kids. Too nice to be getting involved with creeps like that. Don't worry. If he comes back and asks, I never saw you, and neither did my people." He started polishing a glass. "Hell, if I told him where you were, he'd probably just knife me for the fun of it. He seems crazy enough."

"He certainly is," Blake growled. She stared at the bubbling root beer, wondering what to do next. Even if Junior was telling the truth about not ratting her out, Adam probably had eyes all over the place. If he was looking for her in downtown Vale, it was only a matter of time before he put two and two together and set his sights on Beacon. What would happen then?

"Hey!" Ruby chirped, sitting down at the stool next to Blake. She noticed her friend jump slightly. "You okay?"

"Yes, I just…" Blake hesitated. "The music is a bit loud," she finally said lamely.

"I hear ya," Ruby said. "Next time, we should maybe just go to the park or something." She turned to Junior. "Non-alcoholic cherry cordial, please!"

Junior couldn't help but smile at the cheery girl. "Looks like one of you has good manners. Think you could teach your sister a thing or two?"

"Nope!"

"Of course not," Junior snorted as he set about preparing a drink.

Weiss came over, sitting on Blake's other side. "What were you talking to him about? You looked worried."

"I…" Blake looked at Weiss. In that moment, her teammate looked truly concerned. Ruby's expression was similar. She glanced around, then at her drink.

Ozpin's words came back to her: _"Having a few trusted people in your corner is highly beneficial."_

"I'll tell you later," she finally said. To her relief, both Ruby and Weiss seemed satisfied with that answer. _Now, I just need to figure out how to tell them…_

Neptune was staring at his hands, already regretting that he had agreed to this. _Why would you willingly come to a freaking dance club? Did you want to make yourself look even lamer than you already are?_

His mournful thoughts were interrupted when Sun suddenly bounded over. "Get up, Nep!"

"I, uh…"

"Nope!" Sun cut in. "You're not allowed to sit here moping. I don't care if I have to drag you out there. You're dancing, sucky moves or not!"

"I, uh…"

"And now you're sounding like a broken record. Come on!" Sun grabbed his best friend's arm, pulling him toward the glowing dance floor.

Neptune yelped, but didn't resist as Sun dragged him into the center of the group his friends had made up. The others grinned encouragingly. "I'm not very good," he warned.

"What, you think anyone here is?" Yang asked, pointing toward another group, which was full of thrusting, grinding people. "No one cares! Just go for it."

Neptune hesitantly joined in with the others, relieved that no one in their group was thrusting or grinding. Then again, Weiss probably would have lectured them profusely if they had started dancing like that. When Sun playfully nudged his arm, he felt a smile coming unbidden to his face.

After about two hours, some members of the group started looking tired, so Yang suggested going somewhere for dinner before heading back. This proposal was met with unanimous agreement.

They returned to the bar to thank Junior, who had been chatting with Weiss, Blake, and Ruby. "Quite a team, huh?" he said as Yang approached. "Three lovely young ladies, and one hot mess."

"Watch it, Junior!" Yang warned. Her eyes were slightly red, but were countered by a good-natured grin. "I can always climb over this bar."

"Do that, and you'll never get booze here, even when you are of age."

Yang rolled her eyes. "Jeez. Have a guy by the balls once, and he'll hold a grudge for over a freaking year."

Sun, Neptune, Scarlet, Sage, Jaune, and Ren all looked sharply at Yang before nervously edging away.

Weiss groaned. "I don't even want to know."

The group ended up at the noodle stand Sun had been to with Huo. The old man greeted them cheerfully, glad that Sun had actually decided to return. After some very tasty noodles and dessert, the young Riders found themselves feeling very ready to go home and sleep.

They were in the courtyard when Blake suddenly stopped walking. She looked around. No one else was out. The group was all together. Maybe now was the best time to tell everyone. Junior's warning was fresh in her mind, and she shuddered at the thought of running into Adam alone and unprepared in the near future.

The others noticed Blake stopping. "What's wrong, Blake?" Ruby asked.

Blake looked at her friends, speaking before she could lose her nerve. "Can we…sit down somewhere?"

Though puzzled, the group moved to their usual spot on the lawn near the oak tree. They looked attentively at Blake, their tiredness temporarily forgotten.

Blake looked at each of them. She thought of Pit, Adam, and everything else that was about to be revealed. It terrified her, but there was no turning back now. "There's…something I need to tell you guys."

Reaching up, she found the end of her ribbon, closed her eyes, and pulled.

 **So, no bar fights. I like portraying Junior and Yang as having a relatively friendly relationship, like in Volume 2. I also wanted to show that she paid for the damages, because…come on. Yang being awesome aside, she did go into a dude's club, grab him by the balls, and then beat up everyone and everything in there totally unprovoked. Being called "sweetheart" doesn't give you a Destroy Everything License, okay?**

 **One thing I'm enjoying in this story is exploring how people's characters would change if they had a dragon to worry about. For example, since Blake has Pit to consider, running away at the drop of a hat isn't really a viable option, at least until he's bigger.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **If you want to see writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants by yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	32. Full Disclosure

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! We are back with Blake's big reveal.**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Durnehviir from** _ **Skyrim**_ **. An undead dragon tricked into residing in a ghostly dimension called the Soul Cairn for all eternity, he befriends the Dragonborn and tells them his name so that he can be summoned to give assistance in battle. Due to being tied to the Soul Cairn, he can't return to the world of the living for long, so being summoned is the only way he can see his old homeland again. I summon him even when I don't have enemies to fight, just so he can fly around a bit. I feel bad for the guy.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

There were a few seconds of silence as everyone stared at Blake. Beneath the bow she always wore were two furry black cat ears. A thousand thoughts and questions went through their minds.

Weiss in particular felt a sinking sensation in her chest as she thought back to a certain conversation in the RWBY dorm after her foot-in-mouth moment with Sun. _No wonder she seemed so personally affected,_ she thought. _Did she…hide who she was because she knew I'd be her teammate?_

Sun, on the other hand, was thrilled. _Holy crap, I'm not the only Faunus in our group!_ Honestly, he and Blake were close to being the only Faunus in their grade.

Ruby zipped over and hugged Blake. "Blake, you didn't have to hide something like that. We don't mind." She nodded toward Sun to emphasize her point.

Blake smiled despite her worries. Everyone looked stunned, but no one seemed angry that she had kept this secret. Things were going well so far. "It's not just that I'm a Faunus," she explained. "If that was all, I would have told you sooner. You guys _can't_ say anything about this, by the way!"

The others nodded, and Blake took a breath before continuing. "I'm…being hunted by the White Fang. When we were at the club, Junior recognized me and told me that they've been asking about me in Vale."

"The White Fang? What do they want with you?" Ruby asked.

Sun frowned. "I…heard that they track down deserters." He looked hesitantly at Blake. "Is that what's happening here?"

Weiss felt her throat tightening with fear in spite of herself. If Blake was a former White Fang member, was Ozpin's screening really as good as everyone said? Then, she berated herself for even thinking along those lines.

"Partially." Blake glanced at Weiss as she said this. "I was a member of the White Fang since I was little. When it first started out, it was a peaceful organization. We did boycotts, protests, and petitions, and we did it all legally. We also did a lot of marches for dragon rights."

Her fists clenched as she thought back. "But, when m- When the old leader stepped down, things started to change. I tried to rationalize it, tried convincing myself that just one more riot wouldn't really hurt anyone, that it would be a quicker way of getting our message across."

Weiss's eyes narrowed, but she didn't say anything. _She's trusting you enough to confess this. Don't say something you'll regret. You already promised to have an open mind._

"Then, people started getting hurt," Blake sighed. "I tried urging one of the higher-ups, someone I was close to, to stop. He didn't listen. He, like the White Fang, had changed over time."

"He?" Yang asked. "Who exactly was he?"

"His name was Adam," Blake said, her tone leaving no room for further questions on that subject. "He came up with a new idea for the White Fang: If Faunus are going to be prevented from owning dragons, we should not only breed our own, but breed stronger ones."

"Stronger, how?" Ruby asked, thinking back to Penny. _Were they somehow involved with the attack on that airship?_

"Hybrids. Dragon eggs injected with more than one kind of Dust."

There was a collective gasp of horror from the group. Weiss's eyes blazed. "Haven't they read any history books?! Hybrids are unstable! That's why they were banned! That's why only the Schnee Dust Company is even allowed to inject eggs, because we have perfected the process!"

"Not to mention the Purge," Jaune muttered, thinking back to when he was little and news of the systematic culling of all hybrid dragons was all anyone could talk about.

"Exactly, which is why you absolutely have to keep this a secret," Blake insisted. "Because Pit is one of them."

The sense of dread in the air increased tenfold with that confession. If one of the Beacon dragons was an illegal hybrid, everyone could suffer the consequences if he was discovered.

Sage frowned, thinking back. "Is that why he was able to stop Twiggy from falling that day?"

"Yes. His egg was injected with trace amounts of gravity Dust," Blake said. "The experiments were becoming crueler as Adam became impatient. Misshapen dragons were being born and dying immediately. Those that weren't considered strong enough were culled. I ran away from the White Fang and took an egg with me. My plan was to leave a note and the egg at Beacon, so that someone could put a stop to it. The egg hatched before I got here."

"Does Ozpin know?" Weiss wondered. "I mean, he has to know, doesn't he?"

"He does. I told him everything when I got here. He promised to keep me and Pit safe from the Council while I'm a student." Blake looked at the ground. "I'll have to tell him the White Fang is getting closer. I wanted to let you know, just in case…they try something here."

"How many?" Ruby's normally bright voice was shaking with rage. "How many dragons were killed?"

Blake's ears drooped and she stared at the ground. "I don't know. Too many. Adam tried to keep me away from the hatcheries, since he knew how I'd react. I started planning my escape after the first time I saw one."

"What…happened during those hatchings?" Scarlet whispered, though he wasn't sure he really wanted to know.

Blake shook her head. "Anything could happen. I remember one time when they tried making an ice dragon. It was born dead, and was cold to the touch. Another time, there was an attempt at making a wind/fire hybrid. Its heart beat so quickly, it burst within minutes of hatching." She looked toward the stalls. "It's ironic. Pit would have been an experimental dragon, since only small amounts of gravity Dust were used. He would have been culled without a second thought."

Ruby's hands shook and she clenched her fists. "That's…that's…" She leaned into Yang as her sister pulled her close.

"I hope this Adam person doesn't have a dragon," Pyrrha murmured.

"He does," Blake sighed. "One of my biggest regrets was leaving Brand behind. He deserves so much better."

"So, Dragonmaster Ozpin just made you a student after…?" Weiss trailed off, her expression still troubled.

"Despite my affiliations with the White Fang?" Blake smiled wryly. "I guess there's really no point to the screening, huh?" When Weiss winced slightly, Blake's tone softened. "You don't need to be afraid of me, Weiss. I don't like what the White Fang has become. That's why I left."

"What will you do if they find you, though?" Yang asked. "I mean, if they're checking around Junior's, it's only a matter of time before they realize where you are."

"I'll have to run," Blake said. "Me and Pit. I'm not going to make Beacon a target. That's why I wanted to tell you guys. I won't be able to smuggle him out of Vale alone. I know it's asking a lot, but-"

"Wrong!" Sun piped up, folding his arms. "That'll just put you in worse danger. Do you think you'll be able to hide a dragon?!"

"There are plenty of rogue Riders," Blake protested.

"Yeah, but they have fully-grown dragons that can be ridden anywhere. Pit's not even a year old yet! You wouldn't stand a chance!"

"Besides," Jaune added. "Ozpin promised to protect you. I'm sure he and the other profs could easily take down anything the White Fang sends our way!"

"Ditching and going rogue is not the answer," Yang said, her voice sharper than she had intended. "Trust me." When everyone but Ruby gave her confused looks, her face flushed. "My mother is a rogue. I never met her."

Ruby squeezed her hand gently. "Summer was your real mom, Yang. She didn't care about blood."

Yang smiled and ruffled Ruby's hair. "I know, sis. Still, I wish I could talk to my mother just once and get some answers. That's how I met Junior, actually. I tried getting info off of him. I knew he had it, but he refused to give it. Things…escalated."

"Huh. Maybe she's a badass criminal and Junior's afraid of her- Ow!" Sun yelped as Neptune elbowed his side. "What?"

"Take your foot out of your mouth, Sun," Neptune grumbled.

Yang laughed. "No, it's fine. You're probably right, actually. All I really know about her is that her name's Raven Branwen, our uncle Qrow is her twin brother and refuses to talk about her, and her dragon is a fire dragon named Phoenix."

Pyrrha looked around. "Blake, you should probably put your bow back on if you want to keep things secret. It's getting close to when the groundskeepers make their late-night rounds."

Blake quickly re-tied the bow, feeling a twinge of regret. The night air felt nice on her fur.

Ruby noticed Blake's expression. "You can always keep the bow off in our dorm room. We'll remind you to put it on before going out."

Blake smiled. "Thanks, Ruby. And thank you, everyone. I know this is a lot to take in."

"Hey, don't worry about it!" Sun said, holding out his arms in a grand gesture. "It's all part of our whole buddy-bonding thing. I mean, you have this thing, Yang's got her mom thing, Nep's got his water thing, Jaune's got a runty dragon, and Ren's dragon has bad gills. Are there any other stories anyone wants to share while we're here?"

Ren coughed loudly. "I don't think we need to share everything at once. Why don't we focus on the issue at hand?"

Nora nodded. "Yeah, like how we're gonna take out those White Fang goons if they come here. I vote we break their legs and feed them to Ragnar!"

"Nora…"

"Yeah, you're right. We don't wanna make poor Ragnar sick."

"I have a secret, if anyone's interested," Jaune said, lowering his voice dramatically and glancing around.

Pyrrha tilted her head, not quite sure whether he was kidding or not. "What is it?"

"Gather close," Jaune insisted. "Listen real good." When the others leaned in, he grinned. "When I was younger, my sisters would make me play dress-up with them. _Makeup was involved!_ " he hissed.

There was a moment of silence before everyone started laughing. Any lingering tension or fear in the air vanished in an instant.

"Did you wear heels?" Yang asked, snickering as she tried to picture Jaune in a dress.

"You mean lady-stilts?" Ruby snorted.

After that, the conversation became more lighthearted. The friends stayed in the dark courtyard for another half-hour before finally retiring to their dorm rooms, once again reassuring Blake that her secret was safe with them.

Once Team RWBY got back to their dorm, which still felt incredibly empty without the dragonets, Weiss touched Blake's arm. When Blake gave her a curious look, her face flushed.

"I…just wanted to thank you for trusting us," Weiss murmured.

Blake smiled. "Thank you for not freaking out."

Weiss shook her head. "I probably would have if I had found this out earlier." She looked hesitantly at Blake. "Have you been…uncomfortable around me?"

Blake folded her arms, nodding reluctantly. "Yes. At first, I really was. It's part of why I was so determined to keep it a secret. But, after what happened with Sun, after you apologized and promised to improve, I realized that I could trust you."

Weiss felt a genuine smile coming to her face. "I'm glad to hear that. If you don't mind, I do have several questions about Faunus that I haven't had the chance to ask Sun. If you don't mind me asking every now and then…"

"You can ask me anything!" Blake promised. "It would be nice if everyone actually wanted to learn."

"I have a question!" Ruby chirped, blushing a little when Blake looked at her.

"Yes?"

"Um…" Ruby touched her forefingers together nervously. "Is it, uh, rude to ask if I can touch your ears?"

Blake blinked, then chuckled softly. "It would be if you were a stranger. Since we're friends, it's an okay thing to ask."

"Then…can I touch your ears?" Ruby's eyes were bright and hopeful.

Blake hesitated. The last person to touch her ears had been Adam, and it had been in a very…intimate situation. "Not now," she decided. "Maybe eventually. I'll let you know."

"Okay," Ruby replied. "No problem. Thanks, Blake!"

"Do strangers actually ask to pet Faunus?" Weiss wondered. "That seems a tad forward."

Blake grimaced. "Oh, yes. Most people have the same attitude about that as one would have about asking to pet someone's dog. Some don't even ask. It's really bad for canine Faunus. I once knew a fox Faunus who regularly had to deal with kids running over to him and grabbing his tail. The parents wouldn't even stop them!"

"That probably gets annoying real fast," Yang snorted.

"Tell me about it." Blake rolled her eyes. "Feline Faunus have it almost as bad as canines."

"I wonder how bad it is for Sun," Ruby mused.

"He told me recently that people have pulled his tail in the past," Weiss remembered. "It was mostly to harass him. You know, even before I started talking with him, I never understood that. I would never touch someone without permission in the first place, human or Faunus!"

"It's just part of the overall attitude of society," Blake said. "Faunus are seen as being closer to animals by most people. Therefore, certain actions are considered acceptable, such as petting ears."

"Are they, though?" Weiss asked. Her cheeks flushed when Blake glared at her. "I don't mean that offensively, I promise! But, since Faunus have animal features, is it possible that there's a closer relation to the animals in question? Again, that says nothing about your intelligence or anything else!"

Blake felt the fur on her ears bristling, but fought against her temper. _She's asking questions. Don't get mad, or she'll be afraid to learn anything else._ "No," she replied. "Our tails, ears, horns, etcetera have the same genetic material as the rest of a Faunus. We are no closer to animals than humans are. Honestly, the existence of our animal features is still a mystery."

Relieved that Blake hadn't yelled at her, Weiss asked: "Is there a genetic difference between different Faunus, at least?"

"No. That's the strange part." Blake thought back to her early days, when her parents had taught her about the scientific side of being a Faunus. "If a human reproduces with a Faunus, the child will be of the animal species of that Faunus. If two Faunus of the same species reproduce, the child will be that species. However, if two different kinds of Faunus reproduce, the child could be any species. I know a family consisting of a deer Faunus, a leopard Faunus, and their child, who is a bearded dragon Faunus."

"That is really interesting." Weiss was honestly surprised at how little she knew. Then again, Faunus biology wasn't exactly high on her father's list of educational priorities.

"Ooh!" Yang gasped as she suddenly thought of something. "Is it possible for Faunus to fly? Like, if they're a bird or bat?"

"No. Faunus only have one notable external animal feature, and some smaller qualities. Their skeletal structure doesn't vary beyond the external features. Even if a bird or bat Faunus has wings, they won't have the lighter bones necessary for flight. They could potentially glide short distances depending on their overall size, but that's it." Blake let out a yawn. "I think that's enough questions for tonight. We should probably go to bed so we don't sleep in and worry our dragons."

"Omigosh, I forgot!" Ruby gasped, feeling guilty as she thought of poor Storm.

"Hey, she'll be fine," Yang said, patting her shoulder. "They need to get used to this if they're gonna live in the stables next semester."

"I know, but still," Ruby sighed.

The team quickly prepared for bed and turned off the lights. "Night, Blake!" Ruby called. "Thanks again for trusting us. Night, everyone!"

Blake smiled. "Goodnight." She closed her eyes, feeling the softness of her pillow against her ears, and fell asleep quicker than she had ever done before.

Weiss stayed awake a little while longer, contemplating what she had learned and marveling at how calm she felt. _I have a former White Fang member sleeping in the same room as me,_ she thought. _This is basically one of Father's worst fears come true._

Thinking about his mishandling of Glacier and combining that with what she knew now about Faunus, Weiss couldn't help but wonder just how deep her father's ignorance ran. It took her nearly an hour to finally fall asleep.

 **People have been pointing out the differences between how events play out here and how they played out in canon. That's intentional. As I said before, it would be boring if I just mirrored canon events all the way through. There wouldn't be any surprises. There are obviously several similarities, particularly now in the parts that'll coincide with Volumes 1 and 2, but I plan on taking a completely different turn after the Remnant Dragon Festival. That means, among other things, that your Arkos hearts will not be shattered into a million pieces. You're welcome. ^_^**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	33. A Cornered Rabbit

**Rawr, everyone! Happy Dragon Tuesday and happy Independence Day to my fellow Americans. The idea of freedom and equality is more important now than ever. So many basic human rights are being threatened, from health care to the ability to simply be oneself. Keep your head high and stand up for what's right. That's all we can do.**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Gwiber, also known as the White Dragon. In Arthurian legend, there was a man named Vortigern, a conqueror who built a great fortress that kept collapsing. He was told that he needed the blood of a child with no father in order to keep it standing, and sought to sacrifice a bastard child named Emrys (who would later be known as Merlin). Emrys had a vision of two dragon eggs beneath the tower, and said that they were the cause of the fortress collapsing. The area was dug up, and the two eggs were found. From them came two dragons, one red and one white, which then fought. The red one, which represented Wales and went on to be the emblem on the Welsh flag, killed the white one, which represented Vortigern and the Saxons. Vortigern was soon defeated by Uther Pendragon, the father of King Arthur.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Weiss adjusted her down-filled coat as she walked through the crunchy grass of the courtyard. A sudden frost over the course of the night signaled the impending end of fall and the coming of winter. Weiss didn't mind, of course. The cold didn't really bother her as much as it did other people.

Specter absolutely loved the change. He bounded through the grass, running his claws through the cold soil, licking the white sheen from the ground until Weiss told him to stop.

"You're more dignified than that, Specter! Don't let people see you eating dirt," she scolded.

Specter huffed and tossed his head, flicking his tail irritably. Then, he stiffened. He sniffed the air and growled, turning to a part of the courtyard leading toward the stables.

Weiss followed his gaze and felt a hot coil of rage in the pit of her stomach at what she saw. Near the edge of the courtyard, in broad daylight, was a Faunus being harassed by Team CRDL and their dragons.

 _Well, three of them,_ Weiss thought, noticing that Dove and Tank were standing nearby, looking very uncomfortable. She was already striding toward them. Cardin was starting to pull on the poor girl's rabbit ears. Russel had her by the arms.

Specter trotted alongside his partner, hissing softly as he approached the bully dragons. He was more than ready to teach them a lesson. How would they like having their paws frozen to the grass?

"Stop it this instant!" Weiss snapped as she drew close.

Cardin looked toward her, not letting go of the brown-furred ear in his hand. "Step off, princess. Don't you and your designer dragon have a ball to go to, or something?"

Russel and Sky snickered while Dove let out a halfhearted single laugh. Mudslide's green eyes blazed as she snapped in Specter's direction. Barracuda's tail was lashing and Tornado looked like he was trying to decide whether or not to take a chunk out of the Faunus's leg.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "How original. Then again, I wouldn't expect anything less from someone who gets pleasure by ganging up on one person."

"What person?" Cardin snorted. "I was just thinking that, with the weather getting cold, I could use a nice bunny-fur coat."

Russel shook his head. "Nah, not enough fur for that. Go for a pair of mittens."

The rabbit Faunus trembled. "P-Please let go," she whispered.

"Hey, maybe we should get to class," Dove suggested weakly, only to cringe away when Sky glared in his direction.

"That's it," Weiss growled. "Specter, pin Mudslide." As she spoke, she withdrew her pepper spray, dodged around Sky, and sprayed Cardin right in the face.

Cardin screamed, his hands flying to his eyes. Mudslide howled and lunged toward Weiss, only to be pushed to the ground by a rapidly-chilling ice dragon. She whimpered, struggling under the cold paws.

"Tornado, sic her!" Sky shouted, though he didn't really need to. Tornado was already barreling toward Weiss, who barely jumped out of the way in time. The wind dragon turned around, stood on his hind legs, and flapped his wings, knocking Weiss to the ground.

Weiss gasped as the wind was knocked out of her, suddenly regretting her decision to take on Team CRDL on her own. What else could she have done, though? When Barracuda's fangs snapped just short of her face, she jumped back with a yelp.

The Faunus, meanwhile, struggled out of Russel's grip, pulled a whistle out from under her shirt, and blew as hard as she could into it. A piercing tone rang across the courtyard, causing all of the dragonets to stop what they were doing and crouch down. In the distance, a roar rang out. Weiss sat up and saw the form of a dragon flying toward the courtyard from the wind stable.

Russel and Sky followed her gaze and hurried to help Cardin up and rush toward the school. Specter let Mudslide up, and the earth dragon stumbled after her partner. Tornado and Barracuda snarled as they retreated. Dove and Tank hesitated, then followed.

Just as Weiss was standing up, a beautiful, cream-colored wind dragon landed in front of her. Not quite as big as a full adult, it was taller than two horses at the shoulder and sporting a long, sinuous neck and gentle, green eyes.

The rabbit Faunus patted the dragon's shoulder and dusted off her riding chaps before turning to Weiss. "Thank you for your help. They jumped me, so I wasn't able to call Meringue."

"Meringue?" Weiss tilted her head. "I never heard of a dragon being named after a pastry."

The girl laughed. "It's a bit of a theme with our team. My name's Velvet, by the way." She held out her hand.

Weiss gladly took it. "I'm Weiss. It's a pleasure to meet you. And this is Specter."

"So, this is the famous ice dragon," Velvet said, giving him an appraising look. "I never got to see one up close before. He's quite beautiful. Those black eyes are certainly intimidating."

"That's how he got his name," Weiss explained. "Since his eyes made me think of a ghost. You can pet him if you like. He's quite friendly." Her early fears of letting Specter near other people were totally gone by this point.

"Thank you!" Velvet didn't hesitate to approach Specter. "Oh, and feel free to say hello to Meringue. She likes you." She gently touched the ice dragon's scales. "Funny, his scales don't feel too cold."

"They are actually colder than other dragon scales. It's harder to tell with this weather." Weiss looked up at Meringue, who was staring down at her with a curious, open expression.

"Hello." She offered her hand, feeling a warm flutter when the large dragon lowered her head. Her father, of course, hadn't allowed her to interact with Glacier, and the broodery dragons were also off limits. Even when she came to Beacon, she never truly approached the professors' dragons. All she really had were her secret moments with Glacier through the wall of the stable. These large, adult beasts, therefore, still felt like a true marvel. The idea that such huge, powerful creatures could be so loyal to their smaller partners and so gentle with a human that could easily be crushed underfoot, was truly incredible. So, Weiss couldn't help but shiver a little as she touched Meringue's snout and felt a gentle rumble against her palm.

"Lo," Meringue murmured, blinking an eye that was nearly as big as Weiss's head.

Weiss smiled as she stroked Meringue's scales. "You're quite gorgeous, aren't you?"

Meringue bowed her head modestly and blew a soft puff of air. Then, she stiffened. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at something over Weiss's shoulder.

Weiss turned and immediately called Specter over. Tank was approaching, and was carrying something in his mouth. The fire dragon let out a muffled warble, shaking as he looked up at Meringue.

Velvet cautiously approached the dragon, then gasped as she saw what it was holding. "That's my book! One of them must have snatched it." She held out her hand, and Tank carefully placed the book on her palm. "Thank you."

Tank bobbed his head, then bounded off in the direction Team CRDL had gone.

Velvet looked at her book, carefully wiping dragon spit from it. "Thank goodness I don't carry around my collector's edition…"

"Dove must have told Tank to come back here," Weiss said. "He wouldn't have come on his own."

Velvet nodded slowly. "Dove never actually takes part when the other three bully me. I feel a little sorry for him."

Weiss frowned. "Do they do this regularly?"

"Yes. I usually try walking to class with one of my teammates, or I call Meringue." Velvet hugged her book to her chest. "I don't like doing it. It feels cowardly. I tried going on my own today, but…"

"There's nothing cowardly about being cautious!" Weiss insisted. "Why do you think I carry pepper spray with me?" She looked toward the school and sighed. "I wish I could say that reporting them would do any good."

"I know." Velvet patted Specter once more before walking over to Meringue. "I do feel sorry for those dragons. I'm sure they wouldn't be such bullies if they had better partners." She rubbed her dragon's shoulder and smiled at Weiss. "It was nice meeting you, Weiss. You too, Specter. I should get to class, though."

"Oh!" Weiss gasped, realizing that her first class would be starting soon. "I hope I didn't make you late!"

Velvet shook her head. "Don't worry. Professor Peach is usually late herself, and she's aware of my…daily problems. Still, to save time…" She tapped Meringue's shoulder, prompting the large dragon to crouch down. "Might as well get some bareback practice in." She clambered up, sitting down on the dragon's back, careful of the spines. "Bye, Weiss."

"Bye." Weiss waved as Meringue trotted briskly in the direction of the second year arenas. She looked at Specter and his sharp, pointy back spines. "Bareback riding would probably be a little riskier for us." She patted his head. "Well, off to class."

…

"Yo, Blake!" Sun called, jogging to catch up with his friend as she walked across the courtyard during a break between classes. He begrudgingly adjusted a coat that Neptune had made him wear.

Blake and Pit turned around, waiting for Sun and Huo to approach. Pit bristled as Huo let out a low growl.

"Chill, asshole," Sun said, lightly cuffing his dragon's head.

"Is it badass, or asshole?" Blake asked with an amused smirk.

"Honestly, I'm not sure," Sun laughed. "Hey, can we talk for a sec?"

Blake hesitated, glancing guardedly around. Despite the chill in the air, there were still several people in the area. "That depends on what you want to talk about."

Sun raised his hands. "Don't worry, I won't say anything specific."

"Okay. Go ahead," Blake muttered, though she was still a little nervous at what he might inadvertently say.

Sun looked around before speaking. "I just wanted to let you know that it's…a relief to have someone else around who…gets it," he said, hoping this was vague enough for any random people passing by. When Blake didn't show any sign of panic, he continued. "And, I wanted to let you know that you can always talk to me about...stuff that the others might not get on the same level. Know what I mean?"

Blake's shoulders relaxed and she nodded, a smile coming to her face. "Yes, I do. Thanks, Sun. That really means a lot."

They walked to class together, and Sun spent the rest of the day thinking about her. He had, admittedly, thought about her a lot throughout the weekend.

Before finding out the truth about her, Sun had certainly enjoyed Blake's company. She was quiet, nice, and honest. Now, after learning that she was like him, and that her quiet exterior was covering up an intriguing status as a White Fang fugitive… He was starting to wonder if things were starting to look up for him. His head was still in the clouds when Sage approached him after dinner.

"You seem distracted, Sun," Sage noted.

Sun grinned sheepishly. "Maybe a bit."

"Something on your mind?"

Sun glanced around before looking back at Sage. "I…think I might have a crush on Blake."

Sage raised an eyebrow. "You never seemed interested in her before?"

"Well…" Sun explained what he had been thinking and feeling, not sure what to make of Sage's expression as he finished.

After a moment's consideration, Sage spoke carefully. "Are you…sure about your feelings?"

Sun blinked. "Huh? Why wouldn't I be?"

Sage shrugged. "Like I said, you never seemed interested in her in that way before. If anything, I would have thought you liked Yang."

"Nah. Yang's too similar to me, you know?" Sun grinned. "Opposite attract. Haven't you heard?"

"Is that what's attracting you?" Sage asked. "Are you sure you aren't romanticizing her now that you know she's a tall, dark, and mysterious Faunus?"

"I…" Sun frowned as Sage's words sank in. "I don't know."

Sage nodded knowingly. "There's nothing wrong with having a crush. Just don't pursue something serious until you're sure of your feelings. Wait for the novelty of this new information to wear off, then see how you feel." He patted Zircon's shoulder as the earth dragon shifted closer to him. "I like Blake a great deal, and I think that talking with you will help her, one way or another. Time will tell if that means you being a friend, or something more."

Sun tilted his head. "When you say 'like…'"

"I mean platonically," Sage assured him. "Even if I had feelings for her beyond that, I wouldn't give you bad advice."

"Dude, I know that!" Sun punched his arm lightly. "I was just wondering." The two sat down and watched Huo and Zircon.

It was funny watching the two interact. Huo was still very bad-tempered, and Zircon was still skittish. Yet, Huo didn't directly attack Zircon, and Zircon didn't seem nervous at all around his brother. Zircon would pace around while Huo would watch and let out irritated growls. Eventually, Zircon curled up in a patch of grass and Huo entertained himself by setting leaves on fire by touching them with his snout.

"Don't set the whole courtyard on fire, buddy," Sun warned.

Huo snorted, tossing his head stubbornly.

"He seems less aggressive toward you," Sage noted.

Sun let out a laugh. "Yeah. All it took was him driving me to straight-up yell at him. I've had to do it a few more times. He responds to it." He shook his head. "I hate doing it, though."

"If it works, then keep doing it," Sage said. "I think Huo could be an incredible fire dragon once he's properly trained."

"He'll be the biggest badass any Grimm ever saw!" Sun declared. "I'll make sure of it." He looked at Zircon. "And Zircon will be the safest dragon to have, that's for sure."

Sage smiled. "That's true. He won't rush into any dangerous situations."

"Maybe dragons are born with different personalities to balance out sibling groups," Sun speculated. "What do you think?"

"I think it's very possible," Sage agreed.

The two sat together for a little while before going back to the dorms. Sun glanced at his friend. "Hey, Sage?"

"Yes?"

"Thanks for the advice."

Sage smiled. "It's what I'm here for, Sun. It's what I'm here for."

 **With this chapter, I can finally rant about something that has been bugging me for years: Why the hell didn't anyone stand up for Velvet when she was getting bullied in the lunchroom back in Volume 1?! Seriously, I've looked back on that episode several times and keep asking that question. Between Teams RWBY and JNPR, there were EIGHT PEOPLE. Eight kick-ass Huntsmen. Okay, so maybe Jaune wasn't a kick-ass yet, but still! There were seven people who were all better fighters than Team CRDL's four members, so fear couldn't have been the issue. Hell, Blake is a freaking Faunus! Why didn't she say anything? Pyrrha had a pretty strong sense of justice, and could easily kick all of their asses. Nora was very gung-ho about leg breaking. So, what the hell? There were muttered comments about how much of an asshole Cardin was and about how hard it is to be a Faunus, but no freaking action!**

 **Dude, you're Huntsmen! Isn't defending others your freaking job? You literally just sat there and were like "Man, that sucks," when you could have just walked over and told Cardin to fuck off! Or you could have ignored him completely and asked Velvet to sit with you. It would have been so freaking easy!**

 **Seriously, does it bother anyone else that NONE of our main characters did anything but talk while someone was a target of racism at the next freaking table?!**

 **Ahem. Sorry. I have some strong feelings on the matter. As you can see, I corrected the issue here. I also addressed it in my trans!Jaune story, "Chrysalis."**

 **I'm also glad that I can finally address something else that's been on my mind: the contrived nature of Black Sun. Now, if you read my stuff regularly, you know I loved Black Sun before Blake developed her unfortunate habit of slapping my precious monkey boy in the face. *holds back yet another long rant***

 **The truth of it, however, is that the initial basis of their relationship is pretty much the fact that they're both Faunus. Without Sun's personality and Michael's voice acting, I probably would have hated him and brushed him off as a shoehorned love interest. Thankfully, the two ended up having amazing chemistry (before Volume 4). However, since I'm not going the Black Sun route this time around, I'd like to explore their relationship in a different sense. I hope you guys like it!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	34. Another Lesson

**Rawr, everyone! It's Dragon Tuesday once again. This week has me a little bummed. I was going to finally buy the JNPR tee-shirt when the Rooster Teeth clearance sale started, but it sold out like immediately. And apparently, it's not coming back. Just another reminder of Volume 3. *sigh* I mean, I can't buy the Marvelous Seven stuff, because it should be Marvelous Eight, dammit! Also, if you guys want a Weiss or Blake plush, get it now. The Ruby and Yang ones are already retired and the other two have become limited edition. This has been a PSA from Solora Goldsun.**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Gadzooks from** _ **The Last Dragon Chronicles**_ **by Chris D'lacey. I've talked a little about this series and still feel that it's a good read for people who want to see a different writing strategy. D'lacey used a style called organic writing, which meant that he just made everything up as he went. It showed, sometimes in a way that didn't favor the series, but it was interesting nonetheless. Gadzooks is one of the living clay dragons featured in the books, belonging to David, the main character. Zookie, as he's sometimes called, is a writing dragon and had been shown appearing in David's mind whenever he has writer's block to help him along. I wish I had a something like that! Or maybe a dragon to write my agent query letters for me…**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Ruby walked around the earth barn for her lesson with Ozpin and Penny, stopping short when she also saw the mammoth form of Ragnar waiting for her. The great earth dragon was sitting on his haunches, watching her with steady gray eyes. "Hey, Ragnar," she called.

"Lo, Rrroo," Ragnar rumbled back.

A slight smile came to Ruby's face despite her confusion. Hearing a dragon saying her name immediately brought her back to her dad's small broodery. The deepness of Ragnar's voice made her think of Quake.

"Hello, Miss Rose," Ozpin greeted. "Today, we're going to be testing the armor capabilities of the implant. Ragnar will be helping."

Ruby gulped as she looked at Ragnar, then glanced at Storm, who was sticking close to her. She had a tendency to do that after nightfall, when she knew it was close to time to go in her stall. She was reaching the size of a horse, and was still utterly dwarfed by Ragnar.

Guessing Ruby's thoughts, Ozpin chuckled. "Ragnar isn't going to attack her with his claws. He will simply use his powers to hurl small stones at her. The armor supposedly can spread to block hits in certain places. This is a good time to test its reflexes."

That honestly wasn't making Ruby feel any better. "Um, won't it hurt Storm if the armor doesn't work?"

"No more than a swipe from one of her fellow dragonets would," Ozpin assured her. "Don't worry. Ragnar knows what he's doing."

Ragnar stood up and lowered his head to Storm's level. He quickly explained what was going to happen.

Storm gulped and nodded, asking Ragnar to not hit her too hard. Could she put on the nice metal voice now?

Ragnar let out a snort and nodded at Ozpin.

Ozpin took the implant out of its box. "Let us begin. Storm, if you would."

Storm chirped and padded over, allowing Ozpin to place the plate on her head. She closed her eyes as the cool metal spread across her brow, neck and back. She felt the voice in her head and greeted it enthusiastically.

The light turned green. "Salutations. I am the Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant. Designated name: Penny. Powering up." The light blinked a few times as Storm turned to Ruby. "Rider recognized. Hello, Ruby Rose."

"Hi, Penny," Ruby replied. "Dragonmaster Ozpin says we'll be testing out your armor reflexes today."

"Acknowledged. Ready for incoming attack." The light turned red.

"Very good. Miss Rose, take a step back," Ozpin said, moving back a little himself.

Ruby backed away, watching apprehensively as Storm and Ragnar faced each other. The earth dragon growled softly. Then, without warning, a stone zipped from behind Storm. Just as quickly, a clanging noise signaled it being repelled. Ruby saw that, in the blink of an eye, the metal had spread over Storm's right hind leg. She watched as it retracted.

Then, another whistling noise signaled the throw of another stone. This time, it hit Storm square in the forehead, bouncing harmlessly off of the metal plate. Storm shook her head and snorted.

"Good girl, Storm!" Ruby called.

Penny's light turned green. "Storm would like me to inform you that she deserves several apples after this." As she spoke, she blocked two more stones.

Ruby laughed. "Don't worry, Storm. You'll get your apples."

Storm's tail thumped and she warbled cheerfully. Why couldn't she have this thing on her more often? It made asking for treats a lot easier.

After another minute, Ozpin raised his hand and Ragnar took a step back and sat down again. "Things seem to be going smoothly. By the end of the semester, Storm should be able to form more complex thoughts, which will allow us to further test the communication capabilities of the implant."

"Sir, I was wondering." Ruby looked at the metal plating. "Is Storm going to have to test this…in battle?"

Ozpin shook his head, smiling gently. "No, Miss Rose. I won't ask that of you. I simply need the device to be tested for the Festival unveiling. This is only a beta model, after all. If the Council approves the design, we'll be able to make a more combat ready model to use on volunteer Flight Squad dragons."

Ruby glanced hesitantly at Storm and at the green light. "What will happen to Penny?"

"It will most likely be stored," Ozpin said. "If the final device is a success, the beta version will probably be put on display at one of the museums as an important part of dragon history."

For some reason, this answer left a bad taste in Ruby's mouth. Was it really right to just throw Penny to the side after everything was over? 

"Remember, Miss Rose," Ozpin urged when he saw her change in expression. "Penny is a program. She's no more or less sentient than the voices that some people install on their Scrolls. You don't have to feel guilty."

"Okay, sir." Ruby thought she saw the light turn yellow for a millisecond, but it could have been her imagination. "Is there anything else?"

"That should be enough for today," Ozpin said.

"Gotcha." Ruby looked at Penny. "Thanks, Penny. Detach, please."

The light blinked once. "Acknowledged." The plate fell from Storm's brow and the light went out.

Ruby smiled up at Ragnar as Ozpin picked up the plate. "Thanks for going easy, Ragnar."

Ragnar rumbled and nodded his head once. He then turned to Storm, asking her if she was adjusting to her stall.

Storm snorted loudly. She hated the stall! She hated being away from Ruby!

Ragnar gently assured her that every dragon had to go through this. He had been put in a stall during his adolescence as well. Eventually, the dragonets would be allowed in the big stables, where they'd be able to come and go as they pleased.

Storm tilted her head and looked around the grounds surrounding the earth barn. She supposed it would be nice. What if Ruby wasn't able to come back, though? What if something happened, and Storm didn't know about it?

Ragnar touched his muzzle to her shoulder. Ruby would be fine. His partner would be protecting her whenever she wasn't with Storm. Ozpin could be trusted. Ruby would be safe.

Storm blinked. "Rrrr. Rrrrrrr." She sighed and shook her head.

Ragnar let out a huff of laughter, assuring her that she would learn to speak eventually. It wasn't that hard once one grew older and mastered the use of their muzzle and tongue.

Ruby hugged Storm around the shoulders and kissed her scales. "You're trying so hard, girl! I bet you'll be talking before any of the others!"

Ozpin smiled. "I wouldn't be surprised. She's certainly bright." He checked his watch. "Well, you should probably put her to bed soon. Goodnight, Miss Rose."

"Goodnight, sir!" Ruby chirped, leading Storm back toward the individual stalls.

Once the girl and her dragon vanished from sight, Ozpin's smile faded. He pocketed the implant and turned to Ragnar. "Danger is coming, my friend," he murmured. "I got word from Vale that people from the White Fang are looking for young Blake and Pit."

Ragnar growled deeply, his gray eyes shining with anger. "Bad," he snarled.

"Yes. Very bad." Ozpin ran a finger over the implant in his pocket while touching his dragon's leg with his other hand. "I don't know how much longer we'll be able to protect everyone. Whether it's the White Fang, the Council, or whoever was trying to steal the implant, it seems that we're going to be getting the sharp end of the spear no matter where we turn."

Ragnar lowered his head and gently nuzzled his partner's shoulder.

Ozpin sighed. "I honestly don't know what I'd do without you." He stood there, allowing his dragon to comfort him for a few more minutes, before straightening up, putting on his regular, stoic face, and beginning the walk back to his office.

….

Nora awoke to see Ren getting out of bed and walking toward the door. With a silence that most wouldn't expect of her, she slipped out from under the covers and followed. Once in the hallway, she approached her best friend and touched his arm.

"Hello, Nora," Ren murmured, not needing to look at her to know who it was.

"Hi." Nora smiled up at him. "You wanna be alone, or can I come with?"

Ren's lips quirked upwards. "You can join me if you want." That was one thing he always appreciated about Nora: Though she could often be overbearing, she was hyper-aware of Ren's need for alone time and was always quick to ask if he wanted privacy.

At the moment, though he had a lot on his mind, he was honestly happy to have her bouncing along beside him as he entered the courtyard. Her hand was clasped easily in his. It was a gesture that had been common ever since they were little.

"So, what's up?" she chirped. "Having trouble sleeping, or are you thinking about something?"

"Both," Ren sighed. "A lot has happened lately, and it seems that there's been little time to process it."

Nora made a noise of agreement. "I still can't believe Blake was in the White Fang." She kept her voice hushed as she said this. "I mean, I knew that we'd be dealing with bad guys and other stuff as Dragon Riders, but I didn't think it would be in our first semester, you know?"

"Exactly. We already have enough to worry about, especially our team."

Nora squeezed his hand. "Still worried about Guang?"

"I'm always worried about Guang," Ren muttered. "Professor Goodwitch has been giving us extra practice sessions, so that we can work on figuring out how long he can hold his breath. She says she's going to teach me how to hide his gill deficiency from a casual onlooker if it starts to become externally obvious."

"Do you really think the Council will try to cull him over something like that?" Nora wondered. "I mean, from their perspective, it seems kinda dumb to kill a dragon who has bonded with a Rider and only has one small problem that can be dealt with."

"They likely wouldn't cull him outright," Ren said. "I've been doing research on the subject. Dragons that are deemed unfit to bear Riders are usually grounded and put in whatever therapy stables can be found. However, if there aren't any with openings, they're put right into the pit fights, which is an eventual death sentence anyway."

"And the Rider is just left in the dust too, I'll bet," Nora grumbled.

"No, they're offered a new egg in most cases. However, many refuse to take another dragon. The pain of losing one is usually too intense to allow for another bond." Ren shook his head. "I already know that I wouldn't be able to replace Guang, especially if I knew he was in a pit somewhere."

Nora hugged her friend's arm. "Don't worry, Ren. If anything bad happens, we'll go rogue and live in the wild. It'll be awesome!"

"Going rogue isn't something to joke about, Nora. Most rogue Riders are imprisoned for life when caught, and their dragons are killed on sight."

Nora glared up at him. "I'm not joking. At least you and Guang would have a chance that way. Also, there's Jaune and Twiggy. They're in danger from the Council too."

"Still, let's not talk about going rogue until there are no other options," Ren urged. "Remember, Ozpin is known for protecting dragons and their Riders. I'm sure he'd be able to pull some strings for us. I've heard rumors that he has several Riders in his employ who aren't quite rogues, but who are far enough away from the Council to be safe."

"So, secret agent Dragon Riders?" Nora grinned. "That sounds even cooler!"

Ren chuckled despite his worries. "Always looking on the bright side," he murmured with a fond smile.

"Hey, one of us has to!" Nora stood on her toes to tap his nose. "Boop!"

This was enough to banish the rest of Ren's nervous thoughts, at least for the time being. His smile widened as he ruffled Nora's hair. "Thank you, Nora."

Nora giggled. "For what?"

"Just…being you, I guess," Ren murmured as he started walking again.

Nora felt herself blushing, and was suddenly very glad that it was dark out.

The two walked for a few minutes until Nora noticed two figures approaching from the direction of the arenas. "Hey, it's Sage and Neptune. Hi, guys!" she called.

Sage waved as they approached. "Out for a late-night stroll?"

Ren nodded. "Needed to clear my head. There's a lot going on with our group, after all."

Neptune snorted, rubbing a towel through his wet hair, shivering as the winter air hit the parts of his body he hadn't dried completely. "No kidding." Ever since Blake's big reveal, Sun had been incapable of talking about anything else. _Maybe I should've been born with an extra set of ears,_ he thought mournfully.

"Swimming lessons?" Ren gave Neptune a sympathetic look.

"Yep. I'm able to beat down most of my panic attacks at this point," Neptune said proudly. "It still sucks, though."

"Would practicing with other water dragons help?" Ren wondered. "It would give you a different experience, and maybe make you more flexible."

"I think Professor Goodwitch said something about switching dragons in one of our next lessons." Neptune shuddered. "I really hope I don't get Barracuda…"

"I heard something about switching dragons too," Nora remembered. "We may be training other people's dragons for a week, or something like that."

"Within our own teams?"

"I'm not sure."

"Can we continue this conversation inside?" Neptune asked, wrapping his towel around his neck as another breeze caused him to tremble.

"Right, sorry." Ren led the way back to the dorms. The four ended up sitting down in one of the common areas near the kitchen. "I'll make some cocoa. You should sit near the heater, Neptune."

"Want me to help?" Nora asked.

"Not after what happened last time," Ren said firmly. "Don't worry, I'll put marshmallows and whipped cream on yours if there's any in here."

Nora pouted, but didn't try to follow him. "Okaaaaaay."

Sage raised an eyebrow. "What happened the last time you were in the kitchen, Nora?"

"You don't want to know!" Ren called over.

"He's exaggerating." Nora waved a hand dismissively. "There was a minor accident."

"You set the stove on fire."

"Just one part!"

"If by 'one part,' you mean the entire top of the stove, then yes."

Neptune curled up on the sofa near the heater, sniffling quietly.

Sage took the towel away and wrapped a blanket around his teammate's shoulders. "You're going to start having lessons in the indoor pools tomorrow. Why don't you ask Professor Goodwitch for a key? You'll catch a cold if you keep practicing in the arena."

"Okay," Neptune muttered, leaning into Sage's side. "Thanks again for the help, dude."

"It's what I'm here for," Sage said with a slight smile.

Nora giggled. "You're like the team mom, huh Sage?"

"He totally is," Neptune agreed. "Kinda like Ren, huh?"

"Yep!" Nora chirped. "Who do you think is the team mom for Team RWBY?"

"Weiss," Sage remarked. "I saw her lecturing Yang on table manners just yesterday."

"Omigosh, that sounds hilarious!"

"It really was."

Ren eventually returned with four mugs of cocoa, which they sipped contentedly for the next hour before finally returning to their rooms, their minds just a little calmer than before.

 **More character interaction time! Yay! The next few chapters, especially thirty seven through forty, are going to delve even more into the personalities of the dragons and their interactions with everyone else, so stay tuned!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dog wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	35. First Flight

**Rawr, everyone! Happy Dragon Tuesday. This week sees our boy Scarlet getting some love, since I felt he and Nimbus deserved a bit more attention.**

 **So, today's dragon of the week isn't technically a dragon, but he was mistaken for several dragons initially by the main characters. In honor of the release of the trailer for the movie adaptation of Madeleine L'Engle's** _ **A Wrinkle in Time**_ **, I'd like to give a shoutout to the cherubim Proginoskes from the second book in the series,** _ **A Wind in the Door**_ **. That's not a typo. He's a cherubim, since he's an individual but is too vast to just be called a cherub. He appears as an ever-shifting mass of wings, eyes, and fire, and can use his eyes to transport people to different places. He assists Meg in entering the mitochondria of her brother Charles Wallace in order to save him from a deadly illness. I would highly recommend the entire** _ **Time Quartet**_ **series. It seamlessly melds religion and spirituality with math and science, creating a world where facts and morality not only intertwine, but can't live without each other.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

"Okay, Nimbus. Good job," Scarlet encouraged his dragon, who was starting to pant a little. "Let's get you a drink, then we'll try again."

The pair walked in a wide circle around the arena to where the water troughs were. As Nimbus drank, Scarlet turned his attention to his fellow wind Riders, who were all in the middle of the same exercise: teaching their dragons to fly.

The class was now taking place on the freshman runways, which held a series of long tracks ending with large ramps. The goal was to run down the track alongside the dragon, who would then go up the ramp and try to fly. It was similar to the gliding exercises, but the ramps went much higher, and the dragons were given more of a running start. None of them had been successful yet.

Doctor Oobleck nodded at Scarlet as Nimbus lifted his head from the trough. "Good, good. You both need to stay hydrated." He took a bottle of water from a nearby cooler and handed it to Scarlet. "Nimbus looks very close to getting it."

"You think?" Scarlet was a little doubtful. "He keeps zigzagging while running on the path. I'm starting to wonder if his eyesight is going to be a problem."

"I wouldn't worry," Doctor Oobleck said. "Ozpin will protect him if his eyesight turns out to be too bad. As for his performance, we actually have a blind Rider enrolled here. So, a visually-impaired dragon should be just as capable of overcoming difficulties."

"I guess you're right," Scarlet muttered. Secretly, he marveled at how optimistic Doctor Oobleck was. He noticed that the professors had varying attitudes toward the more disabled dragons in their year. Some, like Professor Goodwitch, showed more obvious worry about their future. Others, like Doctor Oobleck, seemed to be totally confident in Dragonmaster Ozpin's ability to protect them.

Nimbus took one more drink and padded over to Scarlet, rubbing his wet muzzle against his partner's shoulder with a cheerful purr. He liked running with Scarlet. Hearing his partner's footsteps helped him run in a straighter line than he usually would.

The two returned to their track and prepared to try again. Scarlet clicked his tongue. "Forward!" he commanded as he ran forward.

Nimbus started to run alongside him at a trot, then started to gain momentum as they both went faster and faster. He barreled ahead, his tongue lolling from his mouth. The path looked skinny, and he couldn't see his own paws as his googly eyes moved this way and that. He shook his head and snorted, electing in the end to just close his eyes.

Once he did that, everything became clearer. He could hear his partner running just behind him, could feel the path beneath his paws. As gravel turned to wood and the path started to slant upward, he went even faster. He could hear Scarlet's encouraging voice as he reached the end. Instinctively, he pushed off with his hind legs, leaped into the air, and stretched his wings.

The air went beneath them immediately and he could feel it holding him up. What a feeling! He didn't want it to end! He flapped his wings once, hoping it would make him stay up longer. To his delight, he felt himself going higher. He flapped again with the same result. He started to flap harder and harder, and even dared to open his eyes.

He couldn't tell where he was! The sky and ground spun together in a colorful blur. He tossed his head with a snort. In the process, he forgot to flap, his wings folding against his sides. All at once, he plummeted.

Scarlet's heart dropped and his entire body felt cold as he watched his dragon fall. "Nimbus, open your wings!"

Nimbus scrunched his eyes shut, shaking himself in response to his partner's shout, and opened his wings. Immediately, the air cushioned his fall, allowing him to glide the rest of the way to the ground, where he landed gracelessly on his face.

Scarlet rushed to his dragon's side, checking him over. Thankfully, there didn't seem to be any sprains or broken bones. Just some scrapes and bruises. "Easy, buddy," he said. "You did good. Let's get you cleaned up, okay?"

Nimbus groaned as he shook himself and followed his partner over to Doctor Oobleck, who was already preparing a dragon first aid kit.

"Well done, well done," the professor commended as he ran a sterile wipe over Nimbus's snout. "Always a few crashes at the beginning. Nothing to fret about." He frowned when he noticed Nimbus's eyes and their continuing erratic movement. "Hm. Will need to come up with a way to focus his vision. Perhaps blinkers or special goggles."

"I've seen blinkers," Scarlet said. "Are there really goggles that can help with eyesight?"

"Well, not on the known market." Doctor Oobleck winked. "I will speak to Ozpin."

"Okay," Scarlet muttered, though he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. _Are we talking black market dragon supplies, here?_ "Would there, uh, be not-known doctors who could help with a water dragon's gills?"

"Professor Goodwitch has been looking into options that may help Ao Guang," Doctor Oobleck assured him. "Worry about your own dragon and team. Trust me, you'll have enough to deal with as Nimbus continues to grow."

Doctor Oobleck handed another wipe to Scarlet. "I think that's enough flying for today. Bandage him up, and take him for a light jog around the track until class ends. Good job, Mister David."

"Nimbus did all the work," Scarlet pointed out.

Doctor Oobleck let out a laugh. "Well said!"

Meanwhile, Ruby was giving Storm an encouraging pat on the shoulder. "That was a good glide! You're so close to flying, I know it! You saw Nimbus do it, didn't you? You're just as good as he is, so I know you can do it. Let's try again!"

Storm whined nervously. Thinking of Nimbus didn't exactly evoke thoughts of confidence. She didn't want to fall on her face! She found herself wishing she had the metal voice to calm her down. Following Ruby's orders was always so much easier when the metal voice was there to help.

"It's okay," Ruby soothed. "You'll be just fine. Remember, you were made to fly!"

Storm listened to her partner's familiar, gentle voice and took a deep breath. If she could get used to sleeping in that stupid stall, she supposed she could handle gliding from the ramp again.

She watched as Ruby got on the human track and started to run. Snorting once, she followed. She had learned that she needed to stay on her track while her partner stayed on the smaller one. That was fine. She knew by now that any separation from Ruby was temporary.

As she reached the ramp, she felt that sense of self-doubt rising in her mind along with the image of Nimbus crashing to the ground. She slowed down as she reached the end, resulting in a clumsy jump that ended with a short glide back to the ground.

Ruby let out a sigh of disappointment, but kept her voice encouraging. "Good job, Storm. Let's try again."

Nora, on the other hand, was dealing with the full extent of Freya's laziness. "Come _on_ , Freya!" she groaned. "I'm not asking a lot! Your legs are longer! This should be easier for you than it is for me."

Freya was sitting on the ground, yawning pointedly. She had already glided from the ramp five times. Why did she need to do it again? She persisted with this viewpoint until the end of class, by which time her poor partner was near stomping her foot with frustration.

"Ugh! You're lucky I love you so much!" Nora snapped.

Freya shook her head and nudged her partner's shoulder, snuffling quietly at her clothes.

Immediately, Nora's face softened and she hugged her dragon around the neck. "Aw, I can't stay mad at you! Your sleepy face is too cute!"

Freya let out a self-satisfied huff. Her partner was such a pushover.

After class, Scarlet rushed off to find Sage. He spotted his friend exiting the earth arena with Zircon. "Sage! Sage!" he shouted as he ran over, followed by a yawning Nimbus.

Sage smiled at Scarlet's obvious excitement. "Let me guess: Nimbus flew?"

"How'd you guess?" Scarlet asked.

"You told me that your first flying lesson would be today, and you look close to jumping over your dragon's head," Sage replied calmly. "So, his eyesight wasn't a problem?"

Scarlet sobered a little. "Well, he did crash. Doctor Oobleck said something about getting blinkers or goggles for him."

"They have those?"

"Apparently, Oobleck knows people who do."

Sage shook his head slowly. "The more I learn about this place, the more I wonder."

"I mean, I don't mind Ozpin going underground a bit if it means a better chance for us and our dragons," Scarlet said with a shrug. "That's what's more important, right?"

"True," Sage murmured. "If the Council was less idiotic, such things wouldn't be necessary."

"Exactly!" Scarlet smiled at Zircon. "And how's our skittish boy today?"

Zircon perked up as Scarlet looked at him, letting out a hesitant chirp. He liked Scarlet's bright voice, and he was glad to be near his brother. Anything was better than dealing with that awful Mudslide.

"He's doing well," Sage said. "Now that he's a bit bigger, he doesn't jump in response to _everything_."

"Just most things?"

"Exactly."

Scarlet laughed. "Well, nothing can be overcome in a day, as Nep has taught us." He leaned against Sage's side. "Anyway, I'm tired from all that running. Carry me?"

Sage rolled his eyes and nudged Scarlet away. "If Nimbus can walk after flying and crashing, you can handle walking back to campus."

"Aw, you're no fun." Scarlet pouted as they started back toward the courtyard. "These guys will be too big to hang out in the courtyard soon."

"It's a good thing the grounds around the stables are so spacious," Sage noted. "They won't have any trouble there."

"Yeah. I hope the move to the stables will be easier than the move to the stalls," Scarlet said. "I know Zircon and Storm are finally adjusting, but still."

They found an open bench and allowed their dragons to play on the grass. Today, this meant Nimbus plopping down and falling asleep. Zircon curled up near his brother, keeping one eye open, just in case a nasty surprise appeared. One couldn't be too careful.

Scarlet watched them for a moment before asking: "Do you ever worry that we work them too hard?"

"What do you mean?" Sage asked.

"Well, we put them through so many different, weird scenarios, from moving to different stalls to running on a track." Scarlet shrugged. "It must be confusing for them, but they do it anyway, because we tell them to."

"It's part of the curriculum," Sage said. "Besides, they need to be trained if they'll ever be able to fight Grimm."

"Which we bred them to do in the first place. It's not like they have a choice."

"If we start discussing the overall morality of making elementals and having Dragon Riders, we'll likely be here for several days."

Scarlet sighed. "I know. I'm just worried about Nimbus. If his eyesight doesn't get better, he may be in danger of being culled, just because he doesn't meet the standards of people who just see dragons as cannon fodder." He watched as Nimbus rolled onto his side. "Now that I think about it, a lot of our dragons are in danger of that: Twiggy, Ao Guang, Nimbus, Pit if people find out about him. You'd think there would be more cases of people fighting against dragons getting culled, considering how common 'defective' ones seem to be."

"Well, until recently, dragonries did hatchings very differently," Sage explained. "It used to be that dragons were hatched in separate chambers. Only a few people were allowed contact with them, and they wore gloves and didn't spend enough time around them to form a bond. Dragons with defects were culled and the ones deemed physically adequate were then released to bond with potential Riders. It was common for hatcheries to keep several extra eggs preserved so that replacements could be given to people who didn't get dragons the first time around."

"That's awful!" Scarlet gasped.

"It is," Sage agreed. "Once Ozpin and Lionheart took over at Beacon and Haven, they changed things for the better."

"What about Shade and Atlas? There's no way they still do that, right?"

"Unfortunately, they do. Atlas has always had a higher standard for their military, and Shade is…rather shifty with their practices. There have been rumors that deficient hatchlings in Vacuo are sent to be trained for the pits instead of being culled."

Scarlet shook his head. "I just don't get it. How can anyone think that's okay?"

"People do the same thing with basically any other domesticated animal," Sage pointed out. "Dogs are trained for the police force, and are made to sniff out bombs and drugs. Others are made to fight each other, and are put down if they so much as bite a person. Kittens are abandoned in cardboard boxes on the sides of roads, just because they're seen as being disposable. Before technology became more advanced, people fought wars on horseback. All we can do is fight against people who mistreat animals and dragons, and take care of the ones we can help."

He smiled at Zircon as the earth dragon padded over to him and plopped his large head in his lap. "I wish there was a way to somehow give Mudslide to someone else."

"Cardin really does mistreat her, doesn't he?" Scarlet asked.

"He does," Sage sighed. "Everyone knows it. Ozpin has given him so many lectures and detentions. I overheard them talking after class recently. Cardin was saying something about his dad suing the school if Ozpin tried reporting him one more time."

"Ugh! Can't they just take Mudslide away from him? Ruby's dad has abandoned dragons at his broodery, right? Couldn't she go there?"

"If things keep up, Ozpin may try that," Sage allowed. "Though, dragons are usually not the same after they're separated from their Riders. Also, the Council has to approve it. Most of the time, they deny claims. In some cases, it's determined that the dragon is too vicious or untrainable, which leads to it being culled or sent to the pits."

Scarlet scuffed his foot in the dirt and groaned. "It really seems like a no-win situation. What can we do?"

"Just keep learning what we can," Sage said. "And keep helping our dragons and each other. It's all we really can do."

"I guess you're right," Scarlet sighed. He scooted over and leaned against Sage. "If I fall asleep, will you carry me to class?"

"Someone has to put Nimbus back in his stall, remember?"

"Good point." Scarlet let out a yawn. "Can we just not move for a few minutes, then?"

Sage glanced at his Scroll. "It looks like we have some time before lunch."

"Good," Scarlet muttered. "My legs hurt."

Sage wrapped an arm around his friend's shoulders, a fond smile coming to his face. "I'm sure you'll live."

Zircon purred as his partner continued to scratch his chin with his free hand. Despite the chill in the winter air, he felt wonderful. There were hardly any other people or dragons around, and his partner, brother, and brother's partner seemed content. This was one of the few times when Zircon could actually feel totally safe.

 **Fun random fact: I found out a few months ago that this story had been placed in a C2 specifically dedicated to hetero-only** _ **RWBY**_ **fics. I was quick to send a message saying "Uh, yeah. Might want to get my story out of there. Things will be getting hella gay later on." Honestly, anyone who reads my fics should know better than to expect hetero-only anything. I have at least three gay ships planned for this fic, including Seamonkeys and Red Herb (though there's an increasing number of people begging for a Shining Sun poly quad, which I may also consider). Knowing me, there will definitely be more than three gay ships over the course of this gem.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	36. Worrying News

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! Can I hear a RAWR?**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Jake Long from the Disney Channel show** _ **American Dragon: Jake Long**_ **. This was one of several animated shows I grew up with as a kid. It had everything I loved: mythical creatures, dragons, cool characters, dragons, fun storylines, mythical creatures, and dragons! Jake, the main character, is a teenage kid who can turn into a dragon at will. It's his job to protect all magical creatures in the area from the Huntsclan, which is trying to destroy all mythical beings. It's a fun show from what I see as a golden age for Disney Channel.**

 **Enjoy!**

It was Thursday when the freshmen all received an email from Ozpin.

 _My dear students,_

 _You have been progressing very well in your training. You have bonded with your dragons and learned about your teammates' dragons. Now, it is time for you to take it a step further. Tomorrow, you will not be collecting your dragon from its stall, but someone else's. You will spend the day with that dragon, going to classes for the element of that dragon. Your partner was randomly selected with the purpose of giving you a dragon of a different element as well as a different team._

 _Good luck._

 _Dragonmaster Ozpin_

At the bottom of the email was a notification of which student was partnered with which dragon. Within minutes, Ruby let out an outraged cry.

"I got _Cardin!_ " Her silver eyes blazed as her grip on her Scroll caused it to creak.

"Easy, sis. You're gonna break it." Yang touched her hand.

"Cardin is _not_ going near Storm!" Ruby snapped. "There's no way!"

"I'm sure she'll be just fine," Blake said, sitting down on Ruby's other side. "There's not much Cardin can do within a day, and Storm isn't nearly as timid as she was before. She won't just lie down and take it if he tries anything."

Ruby stared at the email, shaking her head slowly, unable to keep from feeling a bitter sense of betrayal. She had been helping Ozpin with Penny, and this was the thanks she and Storm got?! "If he hurts her…" Tears pricked the corners of her eyes.

"If he hurts her, we'll take turns beating him to a pulp," Yang assured her. "But Storm will be fine, even if he does. She's a tough girl. Besides," she continued, trying to find a bright side. "This may be a good chance to teach Mudslide a thing or two."

Ruby paused. That was true. In her anger, she had forgotten that she'd be with Mudslide for the day. _Maybe getting some actual affection will help her somehow…_ She sighed. "Still, I'm going to talk to Ozpin. If nothing else, I want Ragnar to explain this to Storm, so she doesn't think I'm just handing her over to Cardin."

"I think that's very reasonable," Weiss said. "Dragonmaster Ozpin is aware of Cardin's tendencies, after all. You should email him about it now."

Ruby nodded, typing a quick message. "What about you guys? Who did you get?"

"I got Jaune," Weiss said. "I like Twiggy, so this should be easy. I'm not sure how Specter and Jaune will get along, though."

"I got Sage," Yang said with a laugh. "He's the most patient person in the world, so he should be fine with Fang. I'm not sure if I can keep Zircon from hyperventilating, though."

"I got Sun," Blake said. "I'd be more concerned, but Huo seems to have mellowed out a great deal. I know Pit would be fine with basically anyone."

"I wonder who else got someone from Team CRDL," Ruby muttered as she sent the email to Ozpin and turned off her Scroll. "Well, let's get to class. I plan on spoiling Storm as much as possible to make up for what she'll have to put up with tomorrow."

After classes that day, they met up with Teams JNPR and SSSN, where they compared who was going to be paired with who for the following day's exercise.

"I'm paired with Russel," Pyrrha said, her brows creased with worry. "I'm not worried about Titan, but I doubt that Barracuda will be very happy to be near me."

"Better Barracuda than Tornado," Ren said with a grimace. "I ended up with Sky." He still vividly remembered when Tornado had severely bitten Nora's ankle. While the wound had healed, it had left a white scar. He would have to keep a close eye on all his limbs while that wind dragon was with him.

"I got Dove." Scarlet shrugged. "He's pretty chill compared to his teammates, and Tank doesn't seem too troublesome."

"I'm with you, Neptune!" Nora chirped. "This will be easy! Freya and Nymph are both super calm."

"So, we just go to our partner's dragon's stall right at the beginning of the day?" Jaune asked. "We don't even visit our own dragons?"

"I mean, we'll obviously see them, but we should keep our distance during the day," Weiss pointed out. "I'm sure Specter will be on his best behavior."

Specter looked up at the mention of his name and whistled curiously.

"I hope." Jaune looked at the black-eyed dragon. "I'm not worried about Twiggy. She already likes you. Honestly, if you sing to her a few times, she should be totally calm all day."

"I guess we'll just have to see what happens." Neptune shrugged, then turned sharply in Sun's direction. "Sun! Coat!"

Sun, who had just unzipped his jacket, pouted. "But-"

"No buts! You'll catch a cold!"

"You are such a nag!"

"The world can go without seeing your abs until spring. Zip up!" Neptune snapped, folding his arms.

Scarlet covered his mouth to muffle a giggle. Sun rolled his eyes and zipped his coat, grumbling loudly all the while.

Ruby was leaning against Storm, who was lying down in a patch of grass that wasn't as covered in frost. Her Scroll beeped and she opened it to see a message from Ozpin. It was asking her to bring Storm for an extra lesson with Penny. She frowned, but typed an "okay" back. Hopefully, Ozpin would have Ragnar explain things during the lesson.

"Do you think this is something they do every year?" Blake wondered.

"I feel like it has to be," Weiss said. "I'll have to ask Velvet."

"Who's Velvet?" Sun asked.

"A sophomore. Team CRDL was giving her a hard time a few days ago, and I stepped in. We've talked a few time since then."

"Oh, I think we met her," Yang remembered. "Rabbit Faunus, right?"

"Yeah!" Ruby said. "She has a cream-colored wind dragon named Meringue."

Yang chuckled. "I swear, you remember dragon names better than you do people."

"I mean, you grew up with me. You should know that by now."

"Wait, you fought off Team CRDL by yourself?" Blake asked, her brows going up. "Not bad."

Weiss's face flushed. "Well, I had my pepper spray. Also, Velvet called Meringue with a whistle as soon as her hands were free, which is what scared them away."

"Still." Blake shook her head. "I really should get brushed up on my hand-to-hand combat skills. There just hasn't been time since I came to Beacon, but I know I should stay sharp in case I run into any…trouble." She glanced around, aware of other people walking down the paths nearby.

"Ooh, why don't we practice self-defense on weekends!" Yang suggested. "I know a bunch of moves."

Ruby grimaced. "I'm not really good with fighting. Dad always told me I should focus on running away."

"Well, it's still good to know how to twist out of a hold if someone _does_ manage to catch you," Weiss pointed out. "I certainly would welcome some extra help. We won't start official combat training for a while, but it would be nice to get a head start."

Sun glanced at his teammates, who nodded. "We'll help out," he said. "You ladies will need some strong, buff men for your demonstrations, after all."

"Do you know any?" Blake asked, cocking an eyebrow and keeping her expression neutral.

Sun gaped, then burst out laughing. "Okay, I walked right into that one!"

"Anyway," Neptune cut in. "Where would we do this? I'm already getting special access to the pool at night. How many favors can we ask for?"

"I'm pretty sure the gymnasium is open twenty four seven," Yang said. "We can't be the only people who want to do stuff like this during our off hours."

"I say we get through tomorrow, then figure out what we'll be doing with the weekends." Sage gave Zircon an extra pat on the shoulder. "One thing at a time."

Ruby got up, urging Storm to get up with her. "Well, I need to go see Dragonmaster Ozpin. See you guys at dinner."

She led Storm away from the others, keeping a gloved hand on her shoulder. Along with her other worries, she couldn't help but wonder if her partner was getting cold. Dragons were endothermic, but could they handle being out without coats, especially at a young age?

 _They're fine,_ she reminded herself. _Dragons have a higher tolerance for weather. When it gets really cold, we'll get blankets for them. Focus on the immediate problems, like Cardin spending all day with Storm tomorrow!_

When she arrived at the field behind the earth barn, she found Ozpin waiting at Ragnar's feet. The Dragonmaster looked a little sheepish as she approached. "I can assure you, Miss Rose, that the matching of partners for tomorrow's exercise was entirely random. The only restrictions were that a person couldn't be partnered with a teammate's dragon, or a dragon of the same species as their partner."

"You know how Cardin is, sir!" Ruby protested. "Shouldn't people like him be left out of exercises like this?"

Ozpin let out a sigh. "It isn't that simple, Miss Rose. Believe me, I've been monitoring Mister Winchester closely. If it was only up to me, Cardin and Mudslide would be undergoing severe counseling instead of their regular classes." He folded his hands. "However, I do not think Storm will be in any danger. She will only be in his care for a day, and I do not think he will do anything physical to her. I have not noticed any instances of him physically abusing Mudslide."

"So? Yelling and neglect can be just as bad, or worse!"

"I agree," Ozpin said frankly. "Unfortunately, there is almost no help available for a dragon who is being emotionally abused. If there isn't overwhelming physical evidence, the Council will do nothing."

"Why, though?"

Ozpin shook his head. "The law of Remnant is flawed, Miss Rose. That's all I can say. I have already asked Ragnar to explain things to Storm. Let's allow them to talk, then we can begin our lesson."

"Okay," Ruby muttered, though she was feeling wholly unsatisfied with how this talk had gone.

Ragnar cleared his throat and snorted pointedly at Storm, who chirped curiously and walked over. With a few huffs and growls, he explained that she would be with another Rider the following day, the one called Cardin.

Storm's fins flared out and she let out a howl of dismay. She hated that human! He was big and loud and mean and horrible! He was mean to Twiggy! Why would she be stuck with him? What did she do to deserve this.

Ragnar growled to silence her. He tossed his head once. It was an exercise to test the dragons and Riders, to see if they could work with others if necessary. He had no doubt that Storm could handle Cardin for a day. She would be back with Ruby afterward.

Storm warbled nervously. What if Cardin hit her?

Ragnar's eyes blazed. If Cardin hit her, Ragnar would personally seek him out and punish him. Secretly, he was glad that his partner couldn't understand dragon language.

Storm perked up at that. Seeing Ragnar scare Cardin would certainly be entertaining.

Ragnar bobbed his head, letting out a huff of laughter. Then, he gave her an extra bit of advice: Don't hate Mudslide too much, or any of the other CRDL dragons. Most of their bad behavior was because of their partners. Mudslide especially was suffering. It would be good for her to be with someone like Ruby, if only for a little while.

Storm snorted. Just as long as Ruby didn't like Mudslide better, she supposed that was okay.

Ragnar turned to Ozpin. "Sorm gud," he murmured.

"Thank you, Ragnar," Ozpin said, nodding his head before turning to Ruby. "Storm understands what's going to happen."

Ruby felt a slight loosening of the tense coil in her stomach. "Okay." She looked at Storm, who warbled softly at her. "Well, let's start our lesson with Penny."

Storm heard Penny's name and bobbed her head, looking around for the plate that held the nice metal voice. When Ozpin took it out of his pocket, she gladly padded over and lowered her head for him to place it on her brow. Was it just her, or were these humans getting smaller?

Penny booted up quickly. "Salutations. I am the Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant. Designated name: Penny. Rider recognized. Hello, Ruby."

"Hi, Penny!" Ruby greeted. "How are you?"

"I am well. My programming is functioning at full capacity, and there are no detected malfunctions." The light blinked yellow a few times, then turned back to green. "Scan complete. No abnormalities."

Ruby couldn't help but giggle. She knew that Penny didn't feel emotions, but it was cute to hear her answer in her own robotic way. "That's good to know." She looked at Ozpin. "So, what are we doing today?"

"Storm's understanding of language seems to be progressing well," Ozpin said. "Let's try for a more extended conversation."

"Sounds good." Ruby turned back to Storm. "Hi, Storm."

The light turned yellow as Penny read Storm's brainwaves. "Hi, Ruby. Ragnar told me he'd stomp on Cardin if I get hurt tomorrow."

Ozpin turned toward his dragon and folded his arms. "Is that true?"

Ragnar suddenly seemed very fascinated with the stars overhead.

Ruby smiled. "That was nice of him, though he's technically not allowed to do that."

Storm snorted. "Why not? Cardin's a bad human. You scold me when I'm bad."

"Yeah, but I don't stomp on you," Ruby pointed out. "Sadly, some people are immune to scolding."

Storm tilted her head, blinked a few times, then turned to Ozpin. "Ragnar's partner, can you help?"

Ozpin shook his head. "I'm already doing what I can, Storm. I hope to turn all of my students into worthy Dragon Riders, Team CRDL included. I will continue working toward that end."

Storm let out a long sigh, clearly unsatisfied. "Stomping on them sounds a lot easier." She turned to Ruby. "Who else will be switching dragons?"

"Everyone," Ruby replied.

"Who's getting the other mean ones?"

Ruby tried to remember. "I think Titan and Barracuda will be switching, along with Tornado and Ao Guang. Tank will be switching with Nimbus, but I'm not too worried about that. Dove isn't as bad as the others."

Storm growled softly. "Titan can handle anything, so he will be fine. If Ao Guang is hurt, I will be mad!"

"I don't think anyone will be hurt, Storm," Ruby assured her. "It'll only be for a day." A thought occurred to her. "Can you remember everything that happens tomorrow? If you can tell us how Cardin is, maybe we can figure out how to help him get better."

Ozpin nodded. "A good idea, Miss Rose," he murmured. "I hadn't even considered that when the matches came out."

Ragnar coughed loudly, giving his partner an incredulous look.

"Hush, Ragnar," Ozpin muttered before turning back to Ruby. "Do you wish to continue talking with Storm?"

"Yes!" Ruby looked up at her dragon. "Penny, are you doing okay?"

"Yes," Penny replied. Her voice had more of a monotone than when she was voicing Storm's thoughts. "There are no issues or abnormalities. Feel free to continue."

"Okay." Ruby sat down on the ground while Ragnar and Ozpin walked off toward the pasture. "So, are you getting along well with the others? I was a little worried about how well you, Fang, Specter, and Pit would get along back when you first hatched."

"Really?" Storm tilted her head. "I like them all. Fang can be mean, but he's mostly just grumpy. Pit can be bossy, but he says he'll keep us all safe. Specter overreacts a lot."

Ruby laughed. "That sounds pretty accurate. How about the other wind dragons?"

Storm let out a chirp. "Nimbus is the best! He has trouble seeing, though. I have to tell him where things are sometimes. Freya likes to sleep a lot, but she's nice."

It was slowly occurring to Ruby that she could easily find things out about the dragons that she and the others could only assume otherwise. She thought about the most prominent concerns in their group of friends concerning the dragons. "What about Zircon? Why is he so scared all the time?"

The light turned yellow and Storm took on a ponderous expression. "I think…" she eventually said. "I think he just is. He sees everything as being dangerous, and wants to be safe. Sage makes him feel safe, since he's big and strong. Zircon is bigger and stronger, so he isn't as scared now."

"Well, that's good to know. What about Huo?"

Storm rolled her eyes. "He's crazy. He wants to train Sun to be stronger, but never gives him a break. He's getting better, but he's still a complete grouch. Nymph doesn't know what to do with him."

"So, that's it!" Ruby smiled. That definitely made more sense than Huo just naturally hating everything. "He's like an angry drill sergeant. That's kinda funny."

Ozpin approached again. "We should probably end this. You may ask her one more question."

"Okay." Ruby thought for a moment. "What about Titan? What goes through his head?"

Storm tapped her foot and shook her head. "Don't know. Titan doesn't really like to talk much."

"Interesting." _Even the dragons can't figure him out. I guess that should make Pyrrha feel better._ She blinked. _Wait. The others aren't allowed to know about Penny. Just my team…_

"Anyway, that's all the talking we can do now," Ruby continued. "Be brave tomorrow, okay Storm?"

Storm nodded her head. "I will. If Cardin hits me, I'll bite him."

Ruby's eyes blazed. "If Cardin hits you, _I'll_ bite him." Noticing Ozpin's look, she addressed Penny. "Thanks, Penny. Command: detach."

The light turned yellow. "Acknowledged." The metal withdrew and the plate dropped to the ground.

Ozpin picked it up, looking at it thoughtfully. "Storm seems to be progressing well. That she was willing to address me without prompting is encouraging." He turned to Ruby. "Miss Rose, I think it would be good to bring your teammates and their dragons when I call you for your next lesson."

"Really?"

"Yes. We may be able to start facilitating better communication throughout your team. The more willing Storm is to talk to multiple people, the better her impression will be when we have the unveiling at the Festival."

Ruby swallowed loudly. She kept forgetting that a public unveiling of Penny was part of this deal. "Will, uh, I need to do anything?"

"Just some basic exercises involving the implant," Ozpin assured her. "And we'll practice in advance, of course."

"That's good," Ruby sighed, though she still wasn't thrilled with the idea of being in front of so many people. Storm nudged her shoulder, and she gave her dragon a scratch under the chin. "I guess it's time to go to bed, huh Storm?"

Storm let out a long sigh, but didn't protest.

After the two were gone, Ozpin turned to Ragnar. "You're getting a little too feisty for your own good, you know that?"

Ragnar tossed his large head and stomped a foot.

"We need to show some dignity! Remember the position we're in."

Ragnar gave Ozpin a dry look and turned around so that his back was facing him.

Ozpin rolled his eyes. "Very mature." He couldn't help but chuckle. "Look at us. A couple of bickering old men."

Ragnar looked over his shoulder, his gray eyes glittering. "Ozzz. Calm."

Ozpin sighed. "Right as usual, my friend." He patted the dragon's leg as he looked at the sky. "Let's hope tomorrow goes smoothly."

Ragnar snorted loudly. He highly doubted that it would.

On the way back to Beacon, Ozpin got a message on his Scroll. He opened it to see an email from Lionheart that read: _"One of our fire dragons can't stop breathing out smoke now that his powers are showing. That's nine total deformities in this year's clutch so far. This is getting worrying."_

Ozpin frowned as he typed a reply. _"The cross-eyed wind dragon crashed due to his eyesight. One of the fire dragons shows no sign of fire powers. I'm not sure whether to count him as a deformed one yet."_

" _Has Ironwood said anything?"_ Lionheart asked.

" _If any of his students' dragons are deformed, he's keeping quiet about it,"_ Ozpin admitted. Other than discussing the P.E.N.I. unit, Ironwood hadn't reached out to Ozpin at all during the school year.

There was a pause before he got a response: _"How many did he end up killing before the bonding?"_

Ozpin sighed. _"Too many, I'm sure. Far too many."_ There wasn't any word from Shade. Then again, if there was a definite increase in fighting dragons in the pits in the next few months, that would be all the proof Ozpin needed.

He placed his Scroll in his pocket, mentally counting out the eight freshman dragons in Beacon that he knew were somehow deformed. That didn't even count the ones that hadn't revealed themselves as having issues yet, or the ones with significant behavioral problems, which could very well count.

This was why he knew that a sense of togetherness was needed between the dragons and Riders, why he kept trying to help Cardin, why he was so determined to successfully use "Penny" to prove a dragon's worthiness to live and create a way to overcome shortcomings: Something was very wrong with all of the dragonries, and he could already feel the Council's knife on the throats of far too many innocent, imperfect dragons.

 **And the plot thickens. The next four chapters will focus on the switching of the dragons, so stay tuned for many shenanigans.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	37. Dragon Switch (Earth)

**Rawr, everyone! Happy Dragon Tuesday! Ready for the big switcheroo? Because I'm pretty sure several characters are not.**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Gabrial from Chris D'lacey's** _ **The Erth Dragons**_ **. Yeah, apparently D'lacey has another series taking place in the world of** _ **The Last Dragon Chronicles**_ **. This one takes place in the early days of Earth, when a Wearle of dragons from Ki:mera first come to colonize it. I only just started it, but I can already tell that it's more coherent and consistent than** _ **The Last Dragon Chronicles**_ **. Gabrial is the main character, a young blue dragon who loses his status at the beginning due to a fatal accident that happens during a courting flight. I like the way the dragons' society is shown so far in this book, but we'll see how it turns out.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

On Friday morning, Ruby made her way to the stalls. It took a few minutes to find the one that had Mudslide's name written on it. Her nose wrinkled as the scent of dirty hay hit her. She opened the door and peered in.

Mudslide was curled up in a ball in the corner of her bed, green eyes narrow as they stared at the door. She was shaking and covering her snout with her paws, clearly trying to block out the smell that filled the entire stall.

"Oh, you poor thing," Ruby cooed opening all of the windows before turning toward the litter area in the far corner. Wet, filthy hay was everywhere, spilling over the edge. It obviously hadn't been cleaned in days. Ruby took a picture with her Scroll before seeking out a shovel.

By the time she was done, a half hour had gone by. She also ended up cleaning and refilling the food and water dishes by the door, which were also dirty. Mudslide hadn't moved, other than cautiously removing her paws from her face. She sniffed the air, which now smelled of fresh hay, and tilted her head. She knew this person. She had seen her partner asserting his dominance over her, as well as several others. What was she doing here?

Where was Cardin? Had he finally forgotten about her? A sharp pang of fear went through Mudslide, and she whined quietly.

Ruby brushed off her pants as she turned to the earth dragon. "Hey, girl," she said, walking over. She stopped short when Mudslide flinched away from her, growling softly in the back of her throat. "Easy," she murmured. "Easy."

It wasn't easy keeping her voice even. In less than an hour, Ruby had all the evidence she needed that something was very wrong with Mudslide. Besides the filthy stall, she wasn't acting at all like how a well-socialized dragon should act. Her eyes were wide as they stared at Ruby, and she let out a defensive growl every time the small human tried to get closer. _Has he just been shutting her away as soon as classes end?_

Thankfully, Ruby knew how to deal with difficult dragons. She still remembered how scared and fierce York had been when he first arrived at her father's broodery. Remembering what Taiyang had done then, she sat down in the middle of the floor, making herself as small and unthreatening as possible. "It's okay, Mudslide," she said softly. "You don't have to be afraid of me. I'm a friend. Do you think you can come over here?"

Mudslide's tiny ears twitched. This human had a nice, gentle voice, similar to Tank's partner.

Ruby smiled. "You're a good dragon, aren't you? You're not so big and mean, right?" She reached into her pocket, taking out an apple. "Do you want a little snack? How's that sound?"

Mudslide perked up, salivating when she saw the bright red apple in the human's hand. Was she offering this to her? When was the last time she'd gotten a whole apple? She honestly couldn't remember. Slowly, cautiously, she stood up.

"That's it. Come here. Forward," Ruby commanded.

Blinking at the familiar command, Mudslide padded forward, stopping short of the small human. Her large nostrils flared, taking in the crisp scent of apple and the welcome background of fresh hay.

Ruby held out her hand, remaining perfectly still, even as Mudslide eagerly snapped up the apple, scraping her palm with sharp fangs in the process. _Poor thing never got a treat in her life,_ she thought. She stood up as the earth dragon chewed. "Good girl." She checked her Scroll. "It's almost time for class. Why don't you eat some food?"

At the mention of food, Mudslide looked at her food dish. The food actually looked appetizing for once, and wasn't contaminated with the scent of her own filth. Eagerly, she walked over and devoured everything.

Watching the earth dragon licking the bowl clean, Ruby opened the door and clicked her tongue. "Come on, Mudslide. Time for class."

Mudslide took a drink of water before padding over to the small human. As they exited the stall, she caught a glimpse of her partner. Her eyes lit up and her tail thumped against the ground. He hadn't forgotten!

Ruby's eyes narrowed. Of course Cardin had waited until right before class to get Storm. She led Mudslide over, leftover rage fueling her. "Hey!" she called.

Cardin turned around, sneering when he saw Ruby. "Try not to ruin my dragon with your wimpy methods, okay?"

Ruby's eyes blazed. "You're ruining her by not taking care of her. I just spent a half-hour cleaning her stall!"

Cardin snorted. "Are you a Rider or a stable hand?"

"Being a Rider means taking care of your dragon." She pointed a finger in his face. "You'd better be nice to Storm today, because if I get even the slightest hint that you hurt her, you'll be sorry."

Cardin folded his arms. "What? Are you going to try beating me up?"

"Nope!" Ruby said. "I'll let Yang and Pyrrha do whatever they want to you, then build a house of cards with whatever's left." She felt a definite measure of satisfaction at the glimmer of fear that went across his eyes. "I'm glad we understand each other. See you later, Storm!" she called, then turned to Mudslide. "Come on, Mudslide. Forward."

Mudslide hesitated, looking from Ruby to Cardin. When her partner turned away from her with a huff, she sighed. Her wings drooped down to her sides as she turned and followed the smaller human toward the arenas.

"Easy, girl." Ruby reached out to scratch behind Mudslide's ear, only for the dragon to recoil with a sharp growl.

Mudslide's head was still bowed as they reached the earth arena. Instinctively, she snarled at the nearby dragonets.

"Stop that," Ruby said firmly. "You don't have to be so grouchy."

"Hey, Ruby!" Sun called over. He was standing next to Pit, who looked mildly confused, but mostly bored. "How's the monster?"

"She's not a monster," Ruby asserted. "And her stall was filthy."

"I'm not surprised. Cardin isn't the type to get his hands dirty unless he's punching someone in the mouth," Yang said as she entered the arena, gently tugging a petrified Zircon after her. "Look at this! He flipped out when Sage didn't show up. I had to get a halter and lead line to get him up here!" She shook her head. "Chill, would you? You know who I am."

Zircon couldn't stop trembling. Where was Sage? Why was the loud girl taking him to the arena? His tail lashed back and forth as he looked around. None of the dragons were with their partners. What did this mean?! He noticed Mudslide standing by Ruby and nearly fainted on the spot.

Pit sighed, walking away from Sun and gently nudging Zircon's shoulder. It was okay. Storm had told him that this was only for a day. It was another exercise.

Zircon whimpered, shaking his head. He wanted Sage. Where was Sage?

Pit rumbled quietly in the back of his throat. Sage was with Fang, who would absolutely be on his best behavior today. Pit had heard them leave together.

Zircon swallowed loudly, looking around. If Pit was calm, he supposed he could be calm. But what if Fang bit Sage? That would be awful!

While Zircon was fretting, Weiss arrived with Twiggy. The runty earth dragon was walking very slowly, looking around and letting out small warbles of distress.

"It's okay," Weiss assured her. "Nothing's wrong." She shook her head as she approached. "She was looking for Jaune the entire way here, poor thing." She scratched the dragon under the chin and hummed softly, which caused Twiggy to relax slightly.

Mudslide's ears twitched at the nice sound, even as she growled in Twiggy's direction. This was the dragon that Cardin especially wanted her to show dominance over. She had to be consistent.

Twiggy quickly hid behind Weiss, edging closer to Zircon and Pit. At the same time, she wanted to run over and drag Ruby away from Mudslide. What if the nice human got hurt?

Ruby lightly bopped Mudslide's nose as the earth dragon continued to growl. "Stop that," she said firmly.

Mudslide blinked, wrinkling her snout and glaring at Ruby. Why was the small human telling her to stop? She was only doing what she was supposed to. She snarled, blowing a hot puff of air in the human's face.

Ruby glared, her silver eyes glinting in the sunlight. "Don't even think about it," she said firmly. She locked her gaze on the earth dragon's green eyes, not blinking. After a minute, Mudslide sighed and looked away. "That's it," she said, immediately changing her tone to a gentle, soothing one. "Good girl." She patted the side of Mudslide's neck.

Pit, Zircon, and Twiggy looked at each other, eyes wide. What was this? Was their bully actually stepping down to Ruby? What was going on here?

A shadow passed overhead, and Ragnar landed with a thump. Dragonmaster Ozpin slid from his dragon's neck, giving the class an appraising look. "I see that everyone was able to get their temporary dragons out here. Raise your hands if you had a difficult time." Almost everyone raised their hands. Ruby wasn't one of them.

Ozpin nodded. "That is to be expected. Your dragons are used to beginning and ending the day with you. Making adjustments can be difficult. However, there are times when one has to be flexible. Imagine a situation that calls every Rider and dragon to arms. What if one Rider is sick while another dragon is injured? There is no time to get a dragon used to the sudden presence of a different Rider. Lives are on the line."

Ruby raised her hand as a thought occurred to her. "Sir, if teaching dragons how to interact with other Riders is so important, why aren't dragons matched with other Riders when their partners are killed? Wouldn't it make sense, instead of retiring a perfectly good dragon or trying to make a Rider bond to a new egg?"

"An excellent question, Miss Rose," Ozpin said. "Indeed, there are many who advocate for reassignment of Rider-less dragons, particularly to other Riders who have lost their dragons. Unfortunately, there is a difference between having to make a change for a short amount of time and having to adjust to an entirely new Rider for the rest of one's life. There have been cases in the past of dragons becoming unresponsive and disobedient when given to new Riders. Since there is a ready supply of eggs and Dust, the Council believes that it makes more sense to give Riders a new, untainted dragon." His lip curled with distaste, despite his efforts to keep his expression neutral.

"There are cases when a Rider or broodery owner specifically asks for a dragon they are acquainted with. If I am correct, that was the case with your father and Tempest." He inclined his head respectfully at the mention of Tempest.

"Yep," Ruby said. "She's very well-adjusted, too."

"So I've heard," Ozpin said. "Now, on to today's lesson. Since you are with unfamiliar dragons, we will keep things simple. The arena has been changed to one of the most basic obstacle courses. In fact, it's merely a larger version of the first obstacle course the Earth Riders ran on their first day of lessons."

Ruby looked at the course, which consisted of towering rock walls, a hot stretch of sand, a mud pit, and a collection of brambles and thorns. _What kind of powers do the groundskeepers here have?_ she found herself wondering. _They keep the courtyard beautiful, and are able to change the arenas in one night!_

"Would anyone like to volunteer to go first?" Ozpin asked.

Weiss, of course, raised her hand. "Come, Twiggy," she said, briskly walking toward the course.

Twiggy hesitated, curling her tail around her paws. She was supposed to do these exercises with Jaune. Where was he? Was he sick?

Weiss, realizing that Twiggy wasn't following, snapped her fingers. "Twiggy, forward."

Twiggy jumped, whimpering at the sudden sound.

"She doesn't respond to snapping," Ruby called over. "Remember when you practiced commands on Storm?"

Weiss nodded, feeling a little irritated with herself for forgetting Twiggy's temperament so easily. Softening her voice, she tried again. "Twiggy, would you please come over? Forward."

Twiggy's ears twitched and she slowly stood up. She was used to obeying Pyrrha's commands, as well as Ren's and Nora's on occasion. She supposed this would be okay. When Pit chirped encouragingly, she finally padded over to the wall. At least she knew how to do this course.

Weiss walked alongside the course as Twiggy easily climbed over the wall. When the earth dragon hesitated by the sand pit, she patted her neck and hummed quietly. This seemed to embolden Twiggy enough to quickly dart across the hot terrain. When they got to the mud pit, Weiss grimaced, realizing that her outfit would likely be stained. She was used to wearing lighter colors, as Specter was generally just as determined to remain clean as she was.

What she wasn't prepared for was the end of the mud pit, where Twiggy got out and promptly shook the mud from her scales, spattering her temporary partner from head to toe. The corner of Weiss's mouth twitched, but she otherwise maintained a calm attitude as she guided Twiggy through the brambles.

When she returned to the others, she could tell that they were struggling to keep straight faces. She glared at them, silently daring them to say anything.

Of course, Sun couldn't resist. "Hey, Weiss. You know you got a little something right here." He pointed to his face, his gray eyes glittering with humor.

"Oh, shut up!" Weiss snapped, causing her three friends to finally burst out laughing.

Mudslide snarled at Twiggy, who was sitting far too close. She lunged toward the runty dragon, closing her jaws just short of her face, feeling immensely satisfied when Twiggy retreated.

Twiggy whimpered, running over to Pit. Why did Mudslide have to be so close to them today?

"Mudslide!" Ruby moved to stand in front of the growling dragon. "That's not nice!"

Mudslide stopped short. The small human was scolding her again. She was so confused! She shook her head and sat down.

Ruby's gaze softened. "You poor thing." She gave the earth dragon another pat.

"Miss Rose, would you like to go next?" Ozpin asked.

"Yes, sir!" Ruby replied. "Come on, Mudslide. There's a good girl."

Mudslide padded slowly after the small human, pausing at the bottom of the rock wall. She knew this exercise, at least. She was already starting up it when Ruby said to climb. What surprised her was the praise and the pat on the head she received when she got to the bottom. That was strange. Cardin usually hurried her right to the sand pit.

Ruby guided Mudslide through the course, and was honestly surprised at how well she could do everything. When they reached the end of the brambles, she took another apple from her pocket. "Good girl, Mudslide! Good girl!"

Mudslide's eyes widened. Two apples in one day?! She snapped it up, licking Ruby's palm a few times to make sure there wasn't any juice left.

Ozpin was staring at the two. _That's the fastest she's ever completed this course…_ Shaking himself, he smiled. "Well done."

A few more people went up before Yang finally decided to get her turn over with. She took the halter and lead off of Zircon, who sat on his haunches, wrapping his wings around himself while whimpering helplessly. "Come on," Yang urged. "You're fine. Let's go."

Zircon stared at the course with wide eyes. There was no way he was doing this without Sage!

Yang groaned. _Jeez, how is he still such a scaredy cat?_ "Come on, forward!"

"Sage always talks really quietly to him," Sun said. "Right in his ear. That might help."

"Okay…" Yang sighed. She walked back over to Zircon and patted his shoulder. "Hey, buddy. I need you to work with me. You'll be back with Sage tomorrow, I promise. The sooner we do the course, the sooner you can rest."

Zircon's ears perked up a little. "Sage tomorrow," he understood. He would be with his partner tomorrow? He supposed that was okay. "Course" was another thing he understood. "Buddy." "Work." "Rest." Slowly, he stood up.

Yang smiled, feeling a small amount of pride at getting through to the skittish dragon. _Maybe I got some dragon whisperer abilities too._ "Forward," she commanded.

Slowly, hesitantly, Zircon padded after Yang. She was loud and bright, but she wasn't bad, he supposed. She was a lot like Sun, when he thought about it. He could listen to her if it meant seeing Sage tomorrow.

"Okay, buddy. Climb," Yang said into his ear before stepping back.

Zircon took a deep breath as he eyed the wall. He and his partner had come out several times now to tackle these obstacles. He had done it with Sage to catch him. Yang looked just about as strong… Scrunching his eyes shut, he started to scramble up the rocks.

Yang watched as Zircon climbed up and down the rock wall. "Good boy!" she praised. "That's a good boy!"

Zircon chirped in response to Yang's enthusiasm, hurrying to the sand pit. The hot sands were every bit as horrible as they always were. When he got to the mud pit, he dipped his front paws in, let out a sigh, then slipped in. When he got out the other side, there was some mud on his snout, which he shook off.

Splat!

Yang's eyebrow twitched as she felt the mud in her hair. _Be cool, Yang. Don't think about how long that'll take to wash and comb out._ "Good job," she muttered.

When she approached the others, Weiss was smirking. "Yang, it seems that you have something on-"

"I will punch anyone who says anything," Yang said flatly.

Ruby nodded. "It's true. She will!" Thankfully, Weiss didn't say anything else.

Sun was one of the last people, leading an incredibly relaxed Pit through the course with ease. Honestly, he probably could have just pointed at the course, and the earth dragon would have done it flawlessly on his own. _Those few extra days of age really do make a difference,_ he mused. "Good job, Pit."

Pit snorted once, bobbing his head at Sun. This one smelled more like Blake than the others. Did it have something to do with the tail he had? It was like Blake's extra ears, but wasn't hidden beneath cloth during the day.

The lesson ended with Ozpin encouraging the students to seek out their partners and their partners' temporary trainers during lunch to exchange notes. Ruby almost laughed out loud at the thought of comparing notes with Cardin.

 _I'm definitely checking on Storm, though,_ she thought. Clicking her tongue at Mudslide, she led the earth dragon to the courtyard to walk around for a bit, then to her stall.

She stopped by Storm's stall on the way to the cafeteria. "Hey, girl. Are you okay?" When she opened the door, Storm practically tackled her to the ground, licking her face and whining. "Storm! Ow! You're too heavy for this! Off!"

Storm backed away, her fins flattening guiltily. She chirped a quiet apology as she waited for her partner to stand up.

"Easy, girl," Ruby said. "Did Cardin do anything bad, or has he been relatively okay?"

Storm tossed her head, growling as she pawed at her left head fin, trying to tell her partner what had happened.

"Your fin?" Ruby touched it gently. "Is it hurt?"

Storm shook her head, pawed at her fin again, and tried to mime grabbing something with her forepaw.

"Grab?"

Storm bobbed her head, then pawed at her fin.

After a moment, Ruby let out a gasp. "Are you saying he grabbed your fin?!"

Storm snorted and snapped her jaws together, pawing at her fin and shaking her head once.

"He…tried to, and you bit him?" Ruby's heart sank. Considering what she knew about Cardin's family, that could lead to a lot of trouble.

Storm leaned in and snapped her jaws shut inches away from Ruby's arm.

"You snapped at him?"

Storm nodded, warbling happily. She was getting better at communicating with her partner. It was a good thing Ruby was so smart.

Ruby shook her head, anger boiling within her. "Don't worry, girl. I'll go talk to him. Try to hang in there for the rest of the day, okay? And don't actually bite him. That's very important."

Storm let out a long sigh, but nodded.

It was easy to find Cardin at lunch, as he was complaining loudly to his teammates. "And then the stupid reptile tried to bite me!"

Ruby stopped next to the table, her eyes narrowing. "In self-defense!"

Cardin stood and turned toward her, scowling. "There you are! Your dragon is insane!"

"She is not! You shouldn't have tried to grab her fin. Don't you remember Doctor Oobleck's anatomy lessons? The ears and fins on a dragon are super sensitive!" She suddenly remembered when Mudslide had recoiled from her when she tried to scratch her ears. "Do you pull on Mudslide's ears too?!"

"Yeah. It gets her to move quicker, and she isn't a whiny baby about it!" Cardin snapped. "Unlike your wimp of a dragon." He paused. "Wait, what makes you think I touched its fin at all?"

"Storm told me," Ruby replied, folding her arms.

Cardin let out a laugh. "Nice try, but none of the freshman dragons are talking yet."

"She didn't have to. If you're smart enough, you can figure out what your dragon is saying without words."

Cardin's eyes narrowed. "Listen, shrimp. One word to my dad, and your wimpy dragon can be sent straight to the pits. If it doesn't behave, that's what'll happen. And you'd better hope you don't somehow ruin my dragon with your hippy crap, or you might be going there too."

Ruby swallowed loudly, but refused to back down. Instead, she raised her voice a little. "Is that a _threat_ , Cardin?" she asked loudly, aware of her friends watching from a table a few yards away. "Because that sounds a lot like a _threat_!"

As predicted, Yang was at her side within seconds, eyes burning red as she glared at Cardin. "You messing with my sister?" she growled. "Because I will gladly rip you apart and feed you to Fang if you are!"

Russel and Sky edged backwards. Dove became very interested in his food. Cardin, meanwhile, sneered, even as a shadow of doubt flickered in his eyes. "You don't scare me, blondie."

"Cardin…" Dove muttered. "She's not the only one…" He glanced toward Pyrrha, who was in the process of standing up and edging closer.

Cardin noticed this and finally decided to back down. "Whatever. You're not worth it. Today just needs to freaking end!" Picking up his tray, he walked off. Sky and Russel shared uncertain glances, then followed. Dove started to stand up, then plopped back down again with a dejected sigh, poking at his food.

Yang glared after the three while Ruby looked at Dove. "Aren't you going with them?"

Dove shook his head. "I…I really don't want to…"

Pyrrha walked over. "Ruby, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Ruby said.

Pyrrha glanced at Dove. "Would you like to sit with us?"

Dove blinked up at her. "I…" He stared at their table. "Can I?"

"Of course." Pyrrha smiled kindly, waiting for him to stand up before leading him back to the table.

Ruby blinked at Yang, who shrugged. "She's way too nice. I keep telling her." They returned to the table, where everyone was looking uncertainly at Dove.

It was Scarlet who lifted the awkward cloud. "Hey, Dove. You can sit here. How's Nimbus been treating you?"

"Um, fine. Are his eyes always like that, though?"

Ruby followed Yang to the other end of the table, where she sat down between her and Weiss. The others smiled at her before gradually returning to their conversations. Most of them were taking Ozpin's advice and comparing their experiences with their dragons.

"So, how is Mudslide?" Jaune wondered. "Has she tried to bite you yet?"

"Not really," Ruby replied. "She seems really uncertain and scared. I scolded her for trying to bite Twiggy, and she got really confused. She's definitely not a bad dragon."

Jaune sighed. "She deserves better."

Blake nodded. "There are no bad dragons, only bad Riders. I'm sure of that."

"Definitely," Ruby agreed. "Get this: Storm tried to bite Cardin!"

"What for?" Sun asked.

"Cardin tried to grab her fin," Ruby replied, feeling another flash of anger. "That's what I was talking to him about. He threatened to get his dad to send her to the pits if she tries to bite him again."

"Why that little!" Yang snarled. "I should've decked him!"

"I'm going to tell Ozpin about this," Ruby promised. "He wants to find a way to get Mudslide away from him, or get them both some counseling." She lowered her voice as she said that part, aware of Dove at the other end of the table.

"At least he's doing something," Blake sighed. "Most people would just look the other way and say 'Oh, it's their dragon, so it's not my business.'"

"So Sage," Yang called over, changing the subject. "Any other tips?"

"Zircon performs best when he feels safe," Sage replied. "If he feels that you'll protect him, he'll be content. Show that you're strong, but don't be overbearing."

"Don't be overbearing?" Ruby let out a laugh. "Good luck with that."

"Hey!" Yang ruffled her sister's hair. "Don't go insulting your mighty protector!"

"I would never think of insulting Pyrrha!"

"Oh, now I'm wounded. My feelings are hurt." Yang put a dramatic hand on her forehead. "I may never be the same. Oh, the emotional scars!"

"You poor thing," Ruby said with a giggle. "How can I ever live with myself after hurting the feelings of such a delicate flower?"

"Damn straight, I'm a delicate flower!" Yang huffed. "My heart is, like, super fragile, okay?"

"Uh huh."

After lunch was their Friday lecture with Doctor Oobleck, who was talking about recent developments in dragon history.

"Initially, it was only sickly hybrids that were culled," he was saying, zipping to one side of the classroom. "However, after the establishment of the Council, and several reports of hybrids losing control and attacking less powerful dragons, it was decided that they all had to die." He zipped to the other side, sipping his coffee. "Riders from the Council's inner circle were sent out. People were encouraged to report where a hybrid may be hiding. Eventually, they were all killed. Since then, the creation of dragons containing more than one element has been strictly forbidden."

Ruby hated hearing about the Purge. The thought of so many innocent dragons dying just because of the mistakes their breeders made was just sickening. She raised her hand.

"Yes, Miss Rose?"

"Didn't their Riders fight back or try to hide?"

Doctor Oobleck nodded gravely. "Oh, yes. As you would imagine, the partners of these hybrid dragons were enraged at this new law. Some went rogue, though most of them were tracked down. There was one instance in Mistral where thirty Riders whose dragons were culled committed mass public suicide by setting themselves on fire." He shuddered at the memory of seeing that on the news. "For a short time, there was an organization dedicated to attacking the Council and anyone else who supported the law: the Draconis Warriors. They were all arrested or killed during the last days of the Purge."

Blake hesitantly raised her hand. When Oobleck nodded at her, she asked: "Were hybrids really more unstable than single-element dragons?"

He considered the question for a moment. "I once had the opportunity to study a hybrid during my early days. She was a water/wind dragon who could make it rain wherever she was." He let out a long sigh. "Such a waste. She was one of the first the Council got. Anyway, she exhibited higher mental functions than non-hybrid dragons. She was incredibly intelligent. If slight modifications had been made to her tongue and snout, she probably would have been fully capable of speaking as well as any human."

Blake frowned. "So…the hybrids were too smart?"

Oobleck nodded. "Yes. My theory, and this is only a theory mind you, is that they became smart enough to question why they were at the beck and call of creatures that were far weaker than they were. Add in the fact that they were much more powerful, and you can see how things would go wrong if one got angry at their partner or their fellow dragons."

After the lesson, Sun followed Blake toward the stalls. "You know, that makes sense," he muttered under his breath, making sure no one was nearby. "Pit's always been a lot smarter than the others."

"As long as he won't become unstable later," Blake said back just as quietly. She couldn't help but think of the White Fang. Had they created a successful hybrid yet? Who was its Rider? Would the dragons Adam was so determined to create turn on the White Fang one day? That would certainly be a nice bit of poetic justice.

Ruby, meanwhile, hurried to Mudslide's stall. "Come on, girl. Let's walk around a bit before dinner."

Mudslide was confused as she stepped outside. What was going on? Cardin usually put her in her stall once lessons in the arena were over. Why was she walking around?

She breathed in the chilly winter air, her ears flicking as Ruby patted her neck. This was…nice.

The two walked around the expansive grounds near the barns. Several others had gotten the same idea. Ruby noticed Ren walking with a very bristly Tornado and decided to approach.

Ren waved as she walked over. "Hello."

"Hey, Ren. How's Tornado?"

"Difficult," Ren said with a grimace. "He is incredibly aggressive! I don't know how Sky isn't covered with wounds, unless he's the only one Tornado doesn't bite."

"Did he bite you?"

"He tried." Ren glanced around. "Also, I noticed something about him."

"What?" Ruby asked

"Look at his fins," Ren said. "Don't touch them! Just look."

Ruby squinted as she looked at Tornado's head fins. She had never looked really closely at him before, due to his love of biting anything that came within range. Now, however, she could see that his fins were a bit droopy. The webbing looked almost shriveled.

"That's not good," she noted. Wind dragons needed their head fins to extract oxygen from the air when flying really high up. The fins passed extra air into small slots near the dragon's ears. They also were used to sense changes in air pressure and detect shifts in temperature.

"No, it's not," Ren said. "You'd think Team CRDL would be a bit kinder to other dragons, since they seem to have handicaps of their own."

As they walked together, Ruby watched Mudslide and Tornado interact. The larger earth dragon was letting out a long, ongoing growl that turned sharp whenever Tornado came too close. Tornado, on the other hand, was hissing and snarling at random, glancing around and occasionally snapping in his sister's direction.

"This _really_ isn't good," Ruby said.

"Agreed," Ren replied. "I will say this: Tornado is well cared for. His stall was clean and his food and water dishes were full. I think his partner's bad attitude toward everyone else is the problem. Or, he could just be naturally aggressive."

"I'm glad they're not all being neglected," Ruby sighed. "I just wish there was more I could do for Mudslide."

"Honestly, I think you're doing plenty right now."

Ruby glanced at the earth dragon, who tilted her head and chirped nervously. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

At the end of the day, she put Mudslide to bed, giving her one last apple. "Goodnight, girl," she murmured, stroking the dragon's head and listening to her slow, rumbling purr. "I'm so sorry."

Walking out of that stall, feeling those green eyes on her, knowing that an uncaring Cardin would be returning in the morning, was incredibly difficult. She realized she was crying and wiped her eyes before going to Storm's stall. She had a feeling that Cardin hadn't let her out at all after lunch.

 _I will help you, Mudslide,_ she vowed as she opened the stall door and greeted her own beloved dragon. _Somehow._

 **The next three chapters will focus on the other elements, obviously. I really had fun with these. CRDL is going to play a larger role in this fic than I had previously thought, so I'm glad that I can finally give them some development.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	38. Dragon Switch (Fire)

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! Quick announcement: I got a new job that involves me taking the bus on Tuesdays and weekends, and I won't get back until the evening, so updates of this fic will be a bit later in the day from now on. Thanks for understanding!**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Fafnir from Norse mythology. Son of the dwarf king Hreidmar, Fafnir turned into a poison-breathing dragon when he killed his father and stole a cursed horde of treasure. He is eventually slain by the warrior Sigurd, who kills him by lying in a trench by a stream and ambushing him from below. As he dies, Fafnir warns about the curse on the gold. Sigurd, of course, doesn't listen and takes the horde anyway.**

 **This week, we get to see how the fire dragons do with the switch. Enjoy!**

 _Okay,_ Scarlet thought as he approached Tank's stall. _You're taking care of a CRDL dragon. Nothing to worry about. This is supposed to be the chill one. Just go in and say hello._

Opening the door, he peered in. The bronze fire dragon was dozing in a patch of sunlight near a window. His face, thinner than an earth dragon's but fuller than a wind dragon's, was the epitome of peace. One of his forepaws or the tip of his tail occasionally twitched, but that was it.

Scarlet felt himself relaxing. _This isn't so bad._ "Hey," he called gently. "Tank?"

Tank groaned, shaking himself. He returned to wakefulness quicker than usual, confused at the presence of an unfamiliar voice. He froze when he saw the stranger at the door. Where was his partner? Where was Dove? His ears twitched and he let out a warning growl.

"Whoa, easy," Scarlet soothed, taking a step forward. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm your temporary partner for the day. Doesn't that sound cool?"

Tank crouched down, barking a sharper warning, his hackles rising like a cat's.

"Okay…" Scarlet rubbed at the back of his neck. _How do I do this?!_ "Uh, easy. Forward?"

Tank snarled, tossing his head and digging his claws into the ground. Why was this person trying to order him? What was going on?

 _He's not giving any ground…_ Scarlet slowly walked closer. "Easy, Tank. I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm…uh…Dove's friend?"

Tank snorted. "Not hurt." "Friend." His partner's name… Slowly, he edged closer, ready to bite if necessary.

Scarlet gulped loudly as he held out his hand for the dragon to sniff. He watched as the horse-sized beast bent down, inhaled loudly, then let out a breath. "See? I'm a friend."

Tank tilted his head, thinking carefully about this. There wasn't a sense of overwhelming fear going around the stalls, just confusion. He had overheard some of the other dragons talking about switching partners. Perhaps that's what this was. Dove wouldn't abandon him, so this was clearly temporary. Deciding that he'd might as well go along with this, Tank gently nudged Scarlet's hand once before going over to his food and water dish and giving his temporary partner a pointed look.

Scarlet let out a sigh of relief. "Okay. Let's get you your breakfast!"

The two later exited the stall just as an angry roar echoed from the direction of the Team SSSN dragon stalls. They moved closer to see a very agitated Blake standing outside of Huo's stall.

"Now, don't be a baby!" Blake snapped. "Come out here right now!"

Huo was in a defensive position inside his stall, tossing his head and roaring angrily. He wasn't doing this! What reason did he have to listen to this person?

Blake shook her head helplessly. Noticing Scarlet, she waved him over. "Please tell me you can help me with this."

"You might just have to be more forceful," Scarlet said with a shrug. "He doesn't really listen to anyone, unless it's Sun. He's stopped biting, so maybe you could use a halter."

Tank whimpered when he saw the angry fire dragon, backing away a few steps. He knew that other dragons didn't like his siblings and, by extension, him. He didn't need to be on the receiving end of Huo's fangs!

Blake found Huo's halter and approached. The dragon snapped at her, hissing loudly. She put her hands on her hips. "You stop that!"

Huo growled again. He wasn't doing this.

Blake walked over and bopped his nose sharply, quickly putting on the halter while Huo processed the bop with a stunned look.

Once Huo recovered, he strongly considered biting the Faunus. She deserved it for trying to order him. Why wasn't she with the weird, freckled earth dragon? He opened his mouth, then paused. His teeth were getting pretty big. If he bit her, he would likely take off a chunk of her arm or leg.

This person was a friend of Sun's. He knew that. Sun certainly spoke her name often enough. Maybe he shouldn't hurt her. Slowly, he closed his mouth and let out a disgruntled sigh. If he had no choice, he'd do this, but he wasn't going to like it. And if anyone made him angry… Chomp!

Scarlet looked over his shoulder to see Tank standing several feet away. "Normally, I'd say not to be afraid, but I think you're being pretty smart right now."

He found Sage in Fang's stall, trying to coax the moody dragon outside. Scarlet couldn't help but laugh at what he saw: Fang had flopped onto the ground and was playing dead, refusing to budge. Poor Sage was trying to drag him to the door.

"Having difficulties, Sage?" Scarlet called in.

Sage groaned. "Very funny." He looked over his friend's shoulder. "Seems like you had no trouble with Tank."

Scarlet smiled at the fire dragon. "He's not aggressive like the other CRDL dragons. He seems pretty smart too. There's this look in his eyes, you know?"

"I know," Sage said. "I've seen that look in Nymph's eyes. Maybe Tank will end up being the alpha after all."

"I don't know. Pyrrha mentioned that Tornado and Barracuda bully him." Scarlet looked at Fang, who was still not moving. "Any ideas for Fang?"

"Do you know where we can find a forklift?" Sage asked glumly.

Eventually, with several apples and a great deal of coaxing, Sage managed to get Fang out of the stall.

Fang followed after Sage, grumbling and dragging his feet with every step. Where was Yang? Why was he stuck with the skittish idiot's human? He stopped dead in his tracks to yawn, taking his time before starting to walk again. He noticed Tank out of the corner of his eye, and growled quietly.

Tank ducked his head. He didn't want any trouble. He never wanted any trouble.

Fang snorted. Why couldn't Tank control his siblings, if that was the case?

Tank sighed. He didn't want trouble with his siblings either.

Fang tossed his head. What a coward!

Tank stared at the ground, not attempting to correct the other fire dragon. He wasn't wrong, after all.

At the fire arena, Scarlet noticed Russel standing nearby with a very surly Titan at his side. They were staring determinedly ahead, like two people who didn't like each other, but knew to act civil while in public.

Huo noticed this and made a noise of disgust in his throat. How could Titan be so calm? If he had gotten one of those jerks, he would have gladly bitten their heads off.

Professor Port was standing next to Pepper, surveying the class with an amused quirk to his brows. "I take it there was some trouble getting your temporary dragons to obey you." In response to the resounding groan from the students, he let out a booming laugh. "Ha! Now, you have an idea on what things were like for the Fire Riders from the beginning. Worry not. Now that the dragons are more mellow, the chances of you getting mauled are comparatively low."

There was much nervous muttering in response to this.

"Now, then. We won't be practicing with their fire powers, since that would be incredibly dangerous for the untrained. The first few lessons for Fire Riders consist of understanding their dragon's temperaments and what makes them tick. So, I would like you to walk around the arena. Jog if you wish. Sit down with your dragons and get to know them better." He waved his hands. "Get going."

Scarlet looked at Tank before clicking his tongue and starting to walk around the edge of the arena. Tank followed, trailing behind a few feet, still looking unsure of this whole situation. When Huo growled nearby, however, he hurried to Scarlet's side.

"Easy, boy," Scarlet muttered, patting the dragon's bronze shoulder. "Huo's not as scary as he pretends to be."

Tank's ear flicked. He highly doubted that.

Blake walked with a few feet between her and Huo, mostly because the fire dragon had decided to heat up his scales. _This is definitely passive-aggressive behavior,_ she thought. _At least Sun has some control over him now._

Sun had been spending a lot of time with her lately. Her coming clean about being a Faunus almost certainly had something to do with that. Blake honestly wasn't sure how she felt about this new behavior. On one hand, it was nice that she could talk about certain things with a fellow Faunus who would simply understand those subjects better. On the other, she didn't like the idea of anyone treating her differently due to her species, even if that difference was a positive one. She hoped that Sun was just being supportive, and wasn't hoping for anything more.

 _Besides,_ she thought, smiling a little to herself. _I wouldn't want to break poor Neptune's heart, would I?_

"Is your partner really so oblivious?" she muttered aloud to Huo. "You noticed how Neptune feels about him, right?"

Huo rolled his eyes and groaned. It was bad enough that his sister's partner was a wimp, but he always made dopey moon-eyes when around Sun. Of course Huo had noticed that! Who wouldn't notice besides his moron of a partner? Well, he supposed that his brothers' moron partners didn't know either. His moron brothers might not have noticed… Why was Huo stuck with all these morons, again?

Blake laughed at how purely human Huo's expression was. "I'll take that as a yes."

Sage was walking at an incredibly slow pace, due to Fang's continued insistence on dragging his paws with every step. "You are a very stubborn dragon," he murmured.

Fang snorted proudly. Of course he was! He had a reputation. He couldn't just trot around like a puppy after anyone. People would start to get ideas. Yang had _worked_ for his respect, after all.

They walked past Russel, who was sitting on a bench and looking at Titan, who was lying calmly on the ground. "Pretty dull, aren't you?" the Water Rider was saying as Sage came into earshot. "If it weren't for the scales, I'd think you were a scrawny earth dragon."

Titan huffed, flicking an ear and rolling his eyes. This human was an idiot, but he seemed harmless enough. When would he be able to be with Pyrrha again? More importantly, which of his friends were with the other members of Team CRDL? He hoped that Twiggy wasn't with Mudslide's awful owner.

"Not gonna do anything?" Russel grumbled. "Whatever." After a moment, he reached into his bag, took out an apple, and let it drop to the ground near Titan's mouth.

Sage continued down the path with Fang, feeling a little stunned. In those few seconds, he had detected an overwhelming sense of grumpiness and even aggravation from Russel. However, the Water Rider didn't seem to have any ill will toward Titan, despite the fact that the fire dragon had won in several fights when Team CRDL had decided to mess with the others. His manner was also nothing like Cardin's grinning cruelty.

 _Maybe…there is some hope for the rest of that team,_ Sage thought to himself as he paused yet again to wait for the annoyingly-slow Fang to catch up. "You really aren't helping anyone by doing that," he pointed out.

Fang stuck out his tongue, a gesture he had learned from Yang.

Sage, despite his agitation, had to laugh at that.

He stopped by Zircon's stall just before lunch. The skittish earth dragon rushed up to his partner, nuzzling his front while whimpering.

"Good boy, Zircon. You're doing well. Things will be back to normal tomorrow," Sage promised, stroking his dragon's brow.

Zircon whimpered. He was okay with Yang, but he really didn't like all this change. "Normal." "Tomorrow." He just needed to wait a bit longer. He wished he could take Sage in his talons and keep him in the stall forever. His partner wouldn't like that, though. So, reluctantly, he backed away and let Sage go, hoping that the day would end soon. When the door closed, he bit his tongue to keep from letting out an alarmed squawk.

He could tell that Huo and Nymph were starting to get annoyed with how afraid he always was. He couldn't help it, though. He couldn't stop seeing all of the dangerous possibilities of the next few seconds. He had to make sure Sage was safe, didn't he? That was his job. That was why he was alive. Huo and Nymph protected their partners in their own ways, so what was wrong with his method?

One of these days, his paranoia would save everyone's lives. He was sure of it. Until then, he'd put up with Sage's sad sighs, Huo's scathing glares, and Nymph's disappointed glances. He would. At least Nimbus never scolded him. He just ran in circles and played and chirped about flying. He was a simple dragon. Zircon was grateful for that, because he was quite simple himself.

After settling in the fire dragons and visiting their own dragons, Scarlet, Sage, and Blake walked to lunch together. They approached the table shared by Teams RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN, Blake sitting near Sun and Yang while Scarlet sat near the end of the table with Sage.

"Hello, Neptune," Sage said to his teammate, who was sitting on his other side. "How has Freya been?"

"Huh?" Neptune looked away from Sun, who had immediately started chatting with Blake as soon as she sat down. "Oh, fine. She seems pretty sleepy all the time, though." He looked toward Nora. "Is that normal?"

Nora rolled her eyes. "Yep. She's a lazy girl, for sure. I can't even do the 'my dragon ate my homework' lie, because no one would believe she'd take the time to chew up paper!"

"So, how's my little brat been?" Yang asked.

Sage rolled his eyes. "Brat is right. He walks as slow as he can everywhere."

"Just give him a good tug on the rope," Yang advised. "He'll speed up. Any tips on getting Zircon to stop freaking out?"

"Have you been talking in his ear? He likes that."

"Yeah, that has helped a bit."

Scarlet was looking at the other tables, frowning when he saw Ruby walking straight toward Cardin. "This could be trouble," he muttered.

The others followed his gaze. Yang almost got up, only to be stopped by Blake. "Wait," she urged. "Let's see how Ruby deals with it."

They watched intently, growing tense as the exchange seemed to grow more and more heated. Finally, they heard Ruby loudly saying: "Is that a _threat_ , Cardin? Because that sounds a lot like a _threat_!"

Of course, a team of four earth dragons couldn't have stopped Yang at that point. She stood up and strode over, her eyes turning that unsettling red color.

"Is it normal for eyes to do that?" Scarlet wondered. "Is it because the anger makes the blood vessels pop?"

"Yang would probably have some eye troubles if that was the case," Sage replied, keeping his eye on Team CRDL, ready to go over if he needed to. "Hazel eyes can change color depending on what's being worn. Maybe some eyes react to emotional stimuli."

Everyone relaxed when Cardin, Russel, and Sky retreated. When Dove remained and Pyrrha ended up inviting him over, no one was sure quite what to make of that. Dove approached the table, hesitating. Discomfort and nervousness were written plainly all over his face.

 _Jeez, this is painful._ "Hey, Dove," Scarlet said. "You can sit here. How's Nimbus been treating you?"

Dove's shoulders slumped with relief as he sat down at the end of the table next to Scarlet. He couldn't help but clench his hands together in a nervous gesture. "Um, fine. Are his eyes always like that, though?"

"I'm afraid so," Scarlet sighed. "It gives him some issues, which sucks since he could be the best flier out of all the wind dragons."

"His wings do look pretty strong," Dove muttered. "He was a bit confused when I got him from the stall, but calmed down when we got to the arena."

"He's pretty easygoing. Tank was okay, once I calmed him down. He seems pretty smart."

Dove looked up at this. "You noticed? He always seems to be analyzing everything. Sometimes, I think he's smarter than me. Er…most of the time, actually."

"How was Titan?" Pyrrha asked. "I checked on him before lunch, and he seemed fine. Was Russel being nice to him?"

"Actually," Sage said. "I saw him giving Titan an apple during class. I guess he doesn't like bullying other dragons directly."

"Yeah," Scarlet snorted. "He just likes setting his dragon on others."

"He doesn't know how to stop," Dove muttered, then froze as the others seated near him turned to look at him. "I mean…"

"Does he _want_ to stop?" Neptune asked. "Because, that would be really great. It'd make things a lot easier for many of us, actually."

"I…" Dove looked around, as if he was half wondering if one of his teammates would pop out of the wall to beat him down for his traitorous behavior. "I grew up with them. They've always been like that. I think they're so used to being that way, they don't know how to change."

"What about you?" Scarlet asked.

Dove shook his head. "I'm just a toady. I latched onto them so I wouldn't get beat up, and we've been…friends ever since."

"That doesn't sound like a very friendly arrangement," Sage noted.

Dove shrugged. "I guess I don't know how to stop either."

After evening classes, Scarlet followed Sage back to their dorms. He was still thinking about Dove. "It's pretty sad, when you think about it," he said. "Dove could be a nice guy if he got away from Team CRDL."

"Well, training solo is an option," Sage said. "Maybe that'll be his chance." He looked at his friend with a smile. "You look tired."

Scarlet let out an exaggerated yawn. "I am. Carry me?"

Sage rolled his eyes. "Are you ever going to give up on that?"

"Nope!" Scarlet chirped, grinning brightly. "Never!"

 **Honestly, the more I get into the dragons' personalities, the more fun I have! Question for my readers: As the dragons get older, their thoughts are going to become more complex. Would you prefer it if I keep framing the dragon conversations as I've been doing, or should I start having actual dialogue between them? Thanks!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	39. Dragon Switch (Water and Ice)

**Happy Dragon Tuesday, everyone! Can I get a RAWR?**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Gorbash from the Rankin Bass movie** _ **The Flight of Dragons**_ **. It's one of my favorite animated movies of all time, and Gorbash is an awesome dragon, even though we technically only get to see his character at the beginning of the movie. He's a young, impulsive dragon who is eager to prove himself on a quest to defeat the dark wizard Ommadon. I love him so much, I have him as my avatar on Tumblr.**

 **Anyway, enjoy the next part of the switch!**

Pyrrha opened Barracuda's stall door, bracing herself for an immediate attack. Instead of a swift charge, however, she saw that the blue-gray water dragon was awake and standing by one of the misters. She touched her nose to the buttons, her transparent second eyelids closed as the water covered her already-moist face. She walked past the mister slowly, letting her gills get nice and wet. As she walked along the wall, she noticed Pyrrha at the door and tensed.

"Good girl," Pyrrha said, holding up her hands. "I'm not going to hurt you. I hope you return the favor."

Barracuda turned around to face the new human fully, her eyes narrowed. She knew this one. This was one of the enemies. She bared her fangs, fanning out her head fins in a threat display. What had the enemy done to Russel? Where was the strong fire dragon who was usually with her?

Pyrrha took a step back, swallowing nervously. The dragons were now larger than horses at the shoulders, with long necks, large heads, and much bigger teeth. A serious bite from any of them would be severe, even deadly. "It's okay," she murmured. "I'm a friend."

Barracuda snorted at the word "friend." She knew better. This human wasn't a friend. Why else did Russel always encourage her to attack her, that annoying fire dragon, and that stupidly-cheerful water dragon? She slapped her large, flat tail against the ground, making a satisfying thumping sound.

Pyrrha flinched, suddenly unsure of what to do. She had gotten so used to Titan, who was passive to almost everything. How did she deal with a dragon this obviously aggressive?

Then, she found herself thinking back to her dragon wrangling days, and felt herself growing calm again.

 _That's right. They were even more aggressive than this, and fully-grown. But…I can't just throw a rope around Barracuda and knock her out._ She thought back, trying to remember a time when she had needed to capture a conscious dragon.

Those captures had always resulted in long, drawn out fights that involved much dodging, ducking, weaving, and finally roping once the dragon became exhausted. Pyrrha didn't have time for something that elaborate. _She is younger,_ she thought. _And there is limited space in here. That might be enough._

Resolutely, Pyrrha stepped forward. Barracuda lunged, and suddenly, the young Rider was a wrangler again. She jumped to the side, crouching down as Barracuda spun around. When the dragon charged again, she easily rolled out of the way.

Barracuda skidded to a halt, spinning around to gape at the red-haired human. What exactly was she?! Fanning out her fins, she puffed out her chest and let out a loud, bugling roar.

Pyrrha stood up and stepped toward Barracuda again, stomping her foot down loudly. She growled deep in her throat and locked her gaze on the water dragon's blue eyes.

Barracuda froze, digging her claws into the ground. This one was tough. No wonder her partner and the others kept trying to assert their dominance! She glared right back, trying to get the human to back down.

Pyrrha took another step, taking Barracuda's halter off of a nearby hook as she did so. She walked forward slowly, not taking her eyes off of the water dragon. As she got closer, she watched Barracuda's fins flatten and her eyes take on an unsure look. Quickly, she closed the distance between them and strapped the halter on, then stepped back.

Barracuda blinked at Pyrrha, raising a paw to touch her halter. Why hadn't the human attacked her?

Pyrrha let out a sigh. "Okay, girl. Let's check your food and water."

To her surprise, she only had to top off the half-full water dish. The food dish was full, and the litter area was completely clean. _At least Russel takes good care of her._ She stepped away from the bowls. "You should probably eat," she said gently. "Class is soon. Don't worry. This is only for today."

Barracuda glared at the human, then looked at her food and water dishes. Why had the human given her more water? Was she trying to get Barracuda's guard down? Still, she was hungry, and ended up turning her back on Pyrrha long enough to eat and drink her fill.

Pyrrha waited for her to finish, then quickly attached a rope to the halter. "Come on, Barracuda. Forward."

Still feeling incredibly confused and tense, Barracuda obeyed. She would be vigilant, so that this human wouldn't catch her off guard. For the time being, however, she could play along and see what would happen next.

Pyrrha let out a quiet sigh of relief as Barracuda followed her from the stall without further incident. She made sure to close the door tightly behind her. With how much Barracuda seemed to be using the mister, it would be all too easy for the inside of the stall to freeze in this weather. _Thank goodness they're heated._

They arrived at the water arena late, but Glynda just nodded at them before continuing with her lecture. "So, you will assist the dragons in basic swimming exercises, similar to what they did at the beginning of the year. Mister Arc, I will help you personally with Specter once the others have started."

Jaune nodded, glancing at his temporary partner. He had managed to get Specter to follow him without incident, though the pale blue ice dragon had let out several concerned whistles on the way to the arena. He smiled when those black eyes turned in his direction. "It's okay, buddy. I'm not too bad."

Specter warbled quietly, shifting from one paw to the other. Storm had told him that they were switching partners for the day. He supposed that this was okay, as long as it was temporary. Jaune was a nice human.

Nymph was perfectly content to be with Nora for the day. She had figured out the gist of this switch relatively quickly. If she was correct, this meant that her partner was with Freya, and that was perfectly fine. Freya was a nice, easygoing dragon who wouldn't hurt Neptune at all. She was more worried about Ao Guang.

Nora was also keeping a careful eye on Ren's dragon, who was sitting next to Sky further down the line. _I'm watching you,_ she thought. _Lay one hand on Guang, and it's leg-breaking time!_

Ao Guang, meanwhile, wasn't sure what to do. He kept glancing at Sky, half expecting the angry human to hit him or somehow summon Tornado out of the air. It was strange. The human had been very brusque, but not aggressive when he had appeared at Guang's stall. Still, the water dragon had refused to move for several minutes. Only a reassurance from Titan had managed to get Guang to follow this human to the arena. Apparently, he'd be back with Ren the following day. He just had to make sure his temporary partner didn't kill him or something.

Glynda turned to Pyrrha. "Miss Nikos, would you and Barracuda like to go first?"

"Of course, ma'am," Pyrrha immediately replied. Carefully, she took Barracuda's halter off and patted her shoulder. "Good girl. Forward."

Barracuda trudged after Pyrrha, her eyes narrow. Why was she doing her arena exercises with this human? This was very wrong.

Pyrrha knelt next to the pool and dipped her hand in the water. It was icy cold, which was to be expected. _Water dragons are expected to swim in deep, cold waters on their own sometimes,_ she noted. The indoor pool lessons Neptune had mentioned were likely only for the exercises involving joint swimming. "Okay, Barracuda. Swim."

Barracuda sat down and huffed. She was not about to obey the enemy!

Pyrrha tried staring her down again. "Barracuda. Swim."

The water dragon snarled, narrowing her eyes. She wasn't going to fall for this again. She thumped her tail against the ground and stomped her paw.

Pyrrha looked helplessly at Glynda. "How does Russel command her?"

"Well, he usually- Miss Nikos, look out!" Glynda gasped, noticing too late the way Barracuda's mouth was opening.

Pyrrha instinctively jumped to the side just as a thin jet of water shot past her, right where she had been standing. She spun around, glaring at Barracuda, who quickly closed her mouth and sat up, giving her a very smug look.

Glynda shook her head. "She's very spirited. As I was saying, she doesn't respond well to orders. Mister Thrush generally speaks to her in a very offhanded way, if that makes sense."

"Offhanded?" Pyrrha blinked at Barracuda. _I'm never like that…how do I speak in an offhanded manner?_ "Um, Barracuda. Swim? I suppose?" She trailed off uncertainly. To her surprise, the water dragon turned toward the water, looking at it as if she was considering Pyrrha's request.

"I mean, only if you want to," Pyrrha added, trying to sound nonchalant while looking intently at Barracuda.

Barracuda flicked her head fin thoughtfully. Why hadn't the human attacked her. She had been waiting for that, so she'd have another excuse to spray her. Instead, she seemed almost resigned. Barracuda sighed. Messing with the human wasn't any fun anymore. She'd might as well get this over with. Otherwise, they'd be sitting by this pool all day. She jumped in, thrashing desperately against the water, pumping her tail to push herself along.

Pyrrha frowned as she watched the water dragon swim. _Are they supposed to still be this clumsy?_ She waited on the other end of the pool, watching as Barracuda put her front paws on the edge and pulled herself up. It was then that Pyrrha saw the problem.

The webbing between Barracuda's toes had holes, as if it had ripped through simple force. The skin was way thinner than webbing was supposed to be. Pyrrha knelt down, watching as Barracuda righted herself. She noticed for the first time that the water dragon walked with her toes clenched tightly together, likely as a protective measure.

 _Team CRDL has crippled dragons, too,_ she realized. She patted Barracuda's neck. "Good job, Barracuda. Good girl."

Barracuda blinked, too confused to bite. This human was being nice. Why was she an enemy if she was nice?

Jaune, meanwhile was leading Specter to a separate part of the arena, looking at some written instructions Glynda had given him. "Okay. Looks like we're doing attack moves." He raised an eyebrow. "Weird. Dragons usually don't learn combat till they're older. Let's get…started…" He trailed off when he turned to the ice block.

Specter was standing next to it, his tongue out and firmly stuck to the block. He narrowed his eyes and growled. How dare the ice betray him like this?!

Jaune bit his lip to keep from laughing out loud. "Easy, buddy." _Do I pull his tongue away, or…?_ He reached for Specter's tongue, only to jump back when the ice dragon growled sharply. "Okay. I'll wait." He watched while Specter slowly dislodged his tongue and turned toward him with it still lolling out of his mouth.

"Let's not lick the ice anymore." Jaune couldn't keep himself from snorting a little as he spoke, which elicited a grumble from Specter. "Okay, Specter. Right slash."

Immediately, Specter straightened up. He turned toward the ice with renewed determination, ready to take his revenge on it for trying to take his tongue. He flexed his claws and lashed out, easily slicing the block into pieces.

Jaune blinked, his mouth dropping open. "Uh, wow. Remind me to never make you angry."

Specter whistled proudly, smirking at Jaune's dumbstruck look. Yes, he truly was awesome!

Nora was leading Nymph to the pool. "Oh, you're such a well-behaved girl," she praised when Nymph padded ahead of her and jumped into the pool without prompting. She watched as the water dragon easily swam to the other side. _I don't even have to do anything!_

Nymph purred contentedly as the cold water coated her gills, and walked back over to Nora. She noticed that this human wasn't afraid of the water at all, and was dipping her hand in it with an easygoing smile. She wished Neptune could be that way. Even now, he was afraid. Nymph hated seeing her partner afraid or sad.

"Good job," Glynda said. "Mister Lark and Ao Guang, you'll go next."

Sky sighed and snapped his fingers at Ao Guang, who jumped and hurried after him, his head low.

This human had hardly said anything. Was he plotting something? Guang glanced toward Nora. She wouldn't let anything bad happen to him, right? She loved Ren, which meant she also loved him. He was safe as long as she could see him. There was also Pyrrha. She'd destroy anything that threatened her friends. He still remembered watching her and Jaune deal with Cardin months ago.

It was this knowledge that gave him the courage to stand next to Sky by the pool. When given the swim command, he sucked in a deep breath and plunged in. He had gotten better at holding his breath and keeping his gills closed. He faintly understood that they were supposed to do something, but all they did was make him cough. He managed to get to the other side without taking a breath, which he was very proud of.

He let out the air in a loud gasp as he got out of the pool and shook himself. He flinched as Sky walked over and put his hand on his gills. The human was squinting at the slits. Then, his eyes widened and he looked at Ao Guang with a strange expression.

Ao Guang blinked. Suddenly, Sky didn't seem too scary. Cautiously, he leaned closer and licked the human's cheek. Ren always laughed when he did that. Would it work here?

Sky didn't laugh. He just blinked a few times. Then, he looked very sad for a split second. Then, his face went back to the way it had been before. He raised a hand, hesitated, then lightly patted Ao Guang's nose before taking him back to the lineup.

Pyrrha watched the exchange curiously. She then looked at Barracuda, who was finally sitting next to her without complaining. _Perhaps…there is hope for Team CRDL, after all._

…

Before lunch, Pyrrha stopped by Titan's stall to check on him. To her relief, he looked perfectly fine. There were no bruises or signs of distress. Once she finished checking him over, he plopped his head on her shoulder, which surprised her. He wasn't normally so openly affectionate. Still, she was all too happy to scratch his neck and kiss his flicking ears.

"You're doing grand, Titan," she murmured. "I know today has been strange. Thank you for being so patient."

Titan blinked slowly, allowing his partner to continue petting him. He was so used to having her around, it had never occurred to him what it would be like to be partnered with someone else. While Russel wasn't the horrible person he had thought he was, he still was inferior to Pyrrha in every way. Titan was a very lucky dragon. He let out a sigh, which came out as more of a rumble.

Pyrrha's heart skipped a beat as she heard her fire dragon purr. She wasn't sure if he had ever purred before! Smiling, she hugged him around the neck. "I love you, Titan." She drew back to kiss his snout. "I need to go to lunch now. Will you be okay?"

Titan blew a puff of warm air through his nostrils and bobbed his head. He could handle whatever came the rest of the day. He was pretty sure of that.

When Pyrrha left, she heard Jaune's familiar voice saying: "You're doing so well! Who's my girl? Who's my best girl?" She couldn't help but giggle quietly as she approached.

Jaune looked up from where he was giving Twiggy a thorough back-scratching. The earth dragon was on her side, her hind foot thumping happily against the floor of the stall. He blushed when he saw Pyrrha. "She, uh, missed me a bit," he muttered.

"I can tell." Pyrrha smiled at the two, her heart warming as she looked at them. She waited for Jaune to settle Twiggy down and walked with him to lunch. "You are so sweet with her," she commented.

"Well, she deserves it!" Jaune said with a grin, his blush deepening a little. Being called "sweet" by basically anyone would normally be a little patronizing. Coming from Pyrrha, however, it made Jaune's heart do weird flips in his chest.

"So, how's Titan?" he quickly asked. "Is he doing okay?"

"Yes, actually," Pyrrha said. "He doesn't seem to have been abused at all. Also, I noticed something during class today." She quickly recounted Sky's exchange with Ao Guang.

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "Huh. Maybe actually interacting with the dragons they're bullying is making them have second thoughts. You think Cardin might have a similar change of heart?"

Pyrrha sighed. "I very highly doubt it."

When they got to lunch, the group started immediately comparing notes on their dragons. "Specter was pretty easy," Jaune said. "He got his tongue stuck on the block of ice, though."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "I don't understand why he didn't just stop after the first time that happened."

When Ruby came in and went straight for Cardin's table, conversation halted. Eventually, they heard her loudly accusing Cardin of threatening her, which was more than enough to get Yang over there. Pyrrha started to stand up, ready to step in if she had to. Thankfully, Yang was easily able to scare the team away on her own.

Or, most of them. Dove was still there, picking at his food, a resigned look on his face. After making sure Ruby was okay, Pyrrha made a split-second decision, remembering that day he had apologized for his team, and asked him to sit with them.

When he started talking to Scarlet, she felt herself relax a little. As she talked to the others, she thought about what she had learned. From what everyone was saying, Cardin was the only member of his team who was actually cruel. The others cared about their dragons, and Dove didn't even seem to want to be a bully.

Perhaps, if a miracle happened, the majority of Team CRDL would actually make decent Riders of themselves.

After classes, Pyrrha asked Jaune if he wanted to join her in walking their temporary dragons around the courtyard. She was honestly curious to see if Barracuda could get along with another dragon if she wasn't being egged on by her partner.

Upon seeing Specter, Barracuda snarled a warning, thumping her tail against the ground. This ice dragon was probably the scariest of all of them. She had to be extra careful of him. She still remembered when he had pinned Mudslide. What if he froze her paws to the ground?

Specter, recognizing one of the dragons that had attacked the rabbit-eared Faunus, hissed and flared out his head frills.

Jaune frowned. "Hm. This might not be a good idea."

"Agreed," Pyrrha sighed. "We should just walk them alone, then put them to bed."

"Yep." Jaune patted Specter's shoulder. "Easy, buddy." He shrugged at Pyrrha. "Oh well. See you in the dorm."

"Bye," Pyrrha called before turning back to Barracuda. "You poor thing," she muttered, patting the water dragon's neck. "You have so much potential. If only your teammates could get their acts together."

Barracuda blinked. The enemy was petting her again. She was so, so confused…

 **The plot thickens! Also, between here and on P/atreon, it would seem that most people want me to give the dragons actual dialogue. I'm already looking forward to figuring out the speech patterns and mannerisms of the dragonets! This is going to be fun!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	40. Dragon Switch (Wind)

**Rawr, everyone! It's Dragon Tuesday again. This week sees the last part of the dragon switch.**

 **Today's dragon of the week is Ventuswill from** _ **Rune Factory 4**_ **. Jeez, this game ate my life when I first got it. Ventuswill, or Venti to the protagonist, is a Native Dragon and the protector of the land of Selphia. At the beginning of the game, she befriends the amnesiac protagonist and provides them with a home in her castle. She acts distant with the townsfolk, afraid that getting too close to the mortals will only result in pain later on when she inevitably loses them. She's a precious dragon who loves to bicker with the main character, and enjoys pancakes! Actually, I can see her being besties with Nora.**

 **Enjoy!**

When Ren opened the door to Tornado's stall, he was quick to slam it shut again as the wind dragon immediately barreled toward him, head fins fanned, mouth open to show some very, very sharp fangs. The pawsteps skidded to a halt, and the dragon headbutted the door from his side.

… _I wonder if I can call in sick,_ Ren thought mournfully. "Tornado, settle!" he said.

On the other side of the stall door, Tornado roared angrily. Enemies! Kick in the side! Would hurt him! Take him away! Bad humans!

Ren tried opening the stall door, only for a clawed forepaw to barely miss his face. He quickly closed it again. Groaning, he took out his Scroll. After a few minutes of searching, he found the number for Doctor Oobleck's Scroll.

After one ring, the professor answered. "Yes, hello? Who is this? If this isn't a student or a fellow professor, I have a class in fifteen minutes!"

"Hello, sir," Ren said. "This is Ren. I need help. I'm partnered with Tornado today, and-"

"Ah, yes," Doctor Oobleck cut in. "I expected this. Tornado is incredibly…erratic. I think there might be a bit of an imbalance in his brain."

Ren breathed a sigh. _Just my luck._ "How do I get him out of his stall without getting bitten?"

"You will need to keep him distracted in some way. He likes shiny objects. Mister Lark often gives him a metal ball to play with during class. Take your time. I will excuse you if you're late."

"Thank you, sir," Ren replied. After he hung up, he tried to think of a good shiny object to use on Tornado. At the same time, he couldn't help but wonder what Sky's overall plan was with his wind dragon. A dragon with a brain imbalance severe enough to cause such aggression was a prime candidate for an early culling if the Council ever saw him.

He eventually decided on one of the glass prisms he had hanging in his window. He ran back as quickly as he could. Even though he would be excused, he didn't want to be too late to class. Cardin would be there with Storm, after all. He, as well as Neptune, would have to keep a close eye on things, just in case Cardin tried anything with Ruby's precious dragon.

Ren returned with a hanging prism. The stall was quiet. Deciding to test things a bit, he pushed open one of the windows and held the glass in the sunlight, casting rainbows on the interior.

Tornado jumped up, his eyes widening at the sight of several rainbows on the ground. His tail started to wag. Excitedly, he pounced on the nearest rainbow. It was on top of his paw! His paw was rainbow! His fins flapped and he let out an ecstatic bark. Then, the rainbows were gone. Why were the rainbows gone?!

Wait…his stall door was opening. He tensed, ready to attack. Then, the rainbows were there again. He put his paw on one, chirping happily when his scales turned rainbow yet again. He faintly noticed a human entering the stall, holding something. That thing was making the rainbows move. The thing was shiny!

"That's it," Ren muttered. "Look at the pretty rainbows." Quickly, he grabbed Tornado's halter and lead and put them on. As soon as the prism was out of sight, the green wind dragon turned and tried to bite his arm. "Hey!" He held up the prism again, and Tornado calmed down right away.

Holding the prism in front of him, Ren checked Tornado's litter area and food and water dishes. The litter area was clean, and it looked as if the dragon had already eaten, so Ren grabbed the lead and led him outside.

The two were ten minutes late to class. Doctor Oobleck didn't bother stopping his speech as they approached and hurried to stand by Neptune, who was hovering close to where Cardin and Dove were standing with Storm and Nimbus.

Freya, though drowsy, was also keeping a close eye on her fellow wind dragons, ready to attack if anything bad happened. When she saw Ren approaching with Tornado, her eyes opened fully and she snarled. She hadn't forgotten that day when Tornado had attacked Nora. If he dared hurt the man her partner loved, Freya would personally snap his wings off!

Nimbus was looking carefully at Dove. At least, he was trying to. Lately, he kept seeing two of everything. It was easier to focus when he tilted his head and closed one eye.

The human had been a little nervous when he came to Nimbus's stall, but hadn't had any issue bringing him to the arena. He was quiet, unlike the other three humans he was usually with, which Nimbus liked.

What he didn't like was that Storm was standing next to the loudest, meanest, ugliest of all of them!

Storm's tail lashed back and forth as she glared at Cardin out of the corner of her eye. The human had come to her stall right before class. She had heard her partner and Mudslide outside, which didn't do much for her nerves. What if Mudslide hurt Ruby? Ruby was really small, after all!

Cardin hadn't even looked at Storm's litter box or food dishes. Thankfully, Ruby had anticipated that and cleaned and filled everything in advance. It was also a good thing that Storm had already eaten, because Cardin had started ushering her out the door immediately. For him, ushering meant shoving.

The entire walk to the arena had consisted of the human grumbling under his breath. Whenever Storm slowed down, he'd raise his hand as if to strike her, which caused her to hurry along, though not without a very sharp snarl in his direction each time.

Now, Cardin was elbowing Dove, muttering to him while Doctor Oobleck explained the day's exercise, which would involve running with the wind dragons. If the students felt comfortable, they could take them up some of the smaller ramps and watch them glide. It would be good practice for when the non-wind dragons started learning to fly later on.

"Looks like we got the most useless windbags here, huh?" Cardin muttered. "The hippy and the retard." He snorted as he looked at Nimbus. "Look at it! It'll just be sitting on the battlefield going 'duh' while its face is getting eaten off by an Ursa!"

Dove shuffled his foot. "He…"

"What's that?" Cardin raised an eyebrow.

"Nimbus is a he," Dove said in a voice that was barely a whisper.

Cardin snorted. "Who cares? Not like it's your dragon."

"Mister Winchester!" Doctor Oobleck snapped, his twitching eyebrow giving away his irritation. "You will be doing three more laps around the entire arena after class, under my supervision."

Cardin cursed under his breath. Once Doctor Oobleck turned away, he sharply elbowed Dove in the side, eliciting a muffled gasp of pain. "Thanks a lot," he growled as his teammate clutched at his abdomen.

Nimbus narrowed his one open eye and took a threatening step toward Cardin, letting out a soft hiss. He really didn't like this one! Why was he picking on his nicest teammate? He needed to leave now!

Cardin took a step back, almost bumping into Storm, who shoved him away with her head. "Why you little-!" he started to say, just as Doctor Oobleck gave the instruction to start jogging.

Neptune took his eyes off of Cardin and Dove, turning to grin at Ren. "Looks like we don't need to worry. The dragons can handle themselves."

"That's a relief," Ren said, still holding the prism piece at arm's length and carefully watching Tornado. "I wish I could say the same for myself…"

When they reached the track, he pocketed the glass, which caused his charge to immediately start snarling at him. "Come on, Tornado. Jog." Ren started running down the path, hoping desperately that Tornado would run alongside him rather than running him down like a rabbit.

Tornado looked at the track. This was familiar. He had to jog. But where was Sky? Where were the rainbows? He started running, since that was what he was supposed to do here. He didn't like this human. He ran too slow. He tried to move a little faster to urge the human to speed up.

Ren picked up his pace, glad that Tornado wasn't pouncing on him. As he ran alongside the dragon, he noticed something he had never seen before (probably due to being distracted by Tornado's claws or teeth): Tornado's head fins were malformed. The webbing was shriveled and the fins had an overall droop to them.

 _That's not good,_ he thought, resisting the urge to reach out and touch the fins. _It looks as if Team CRDL has its own shortcomings, after all._

Neptune, meanwhile, started running with Freya. He was relieved to see that she had a nice, slow pace. _Probably because she's so sleepy all the time._ He looked at her serene face and half-lidded eyes. "You're like a drowsy version of Nymph," he noted.

For a moment, he wondered what it would have been like if things had been switched around, if he had ended up with Freya and Nora had gotten Nymph. The two had similar temperaments, and Neptune wouldn't have to be visiting that awful pool every other night.

Of course, he dismissed the thought as soon as it arose. First of all, if he had gotten Freya, he wouldn't have ended up on a team with Sun. Second of all, Nymph was his dragon. She was perfect in every way. She was patient, strong, smart, and gentle. Though Freya had a lot of good qualities, she was still a different dragon. She was Nora's dragon.

Freya yawned, trying to slow her pace down a little more. When Neptune didn't notice, she flicked a fin happily. This was going to be the easiest class ever! Maybe she could slow things down to a walk by the end…

By the end of class, only a few people had tried using the ramps. Neptune had attempted it with Freya, though they had been going so slow by then, she didn't even glide. Dove, at Doctor Oobleck's insistence, led Nimbus up one of the ramps and was surprised at just how far the wind dragon glided before stumbling back to the ground.

"Class dismissed," Doctor Oobleck called. "Except for you, Mister Winchester," he added when he saw Cardin trying to sneak away. "Three more laps."

Cardin glared at the professor, but didn't say anything as he continued jogging on the track. "Hurry up, you dumb lizard," he growled over his shoulder at Storm. "I'm not missing lunch for this."

Storm growled and suddenly shot ahead, forcing Cardin to sprint to catch up. With a self-satisfied huff, she slowed down to a semi-regular pace, though she did go a little quicker than usual. She honestly couldn't wait to go back to her stall.

Once they finished their laps and left the arena, Cardin picked up his pace, clearly eager to get rid of the wind dragon.

Storm was lagging behind a little, panting a bit with exertion after the fast jog.

"Can't you go any faster?!" Cardin spun around, reaching for Storm's head fin.

Storm pulled her head away just as he made a grab for her sensitive fin, growling sharply. She lunged toward him, snapping her jaws just short of his hand, remembering at the last minute to not actually hurt him.

Cardin jumped back, his eyes widening, an expression of fear coming to his face for the first time. "Fucking crazy lizard!" he snarled, turning abruptly and walking off at a brisk pace, not bothering to see if his charge was following.

Storm waited a minute before walking again. Her fins were pressed against her head, just in case he tried anything again. Just the same, she wanted to be as far away from him as possible. When she got back to her stall, she saw that he wasn't there. He had just opened the door and left. Precious heat had already seeped out into the surrounding winter air.

Grumbling softly, vowing to tell Ruby everything the next time she got to wear Penny, Storm entered her stall and pulled the door shut behind her. Thankfully, Ruby came by just a few minutes later to check on her. Seeing those silver eyes again made everything okay.

….

In the cafeteria, Neptune was talking animatedly with Sun. "There are definitely a lot of similarities between wind and water dragons," he was saying. "Besides the fins, I mean. Leg strength is really important. It's kinda like how I need to have Nymph swim extra laps in the pool for homework."

The teams, of course, discussed their individual elemental lessons on a regular basis, but not in great detail, as they were usually tired by the end of the day. As a result, they hadn't fully known what to expect before their morning classes.

"Cool," Sun replied. "There's a bit more obstacle course-type stuff with the earth dragons than I expected." He perked up when he saw Blake approaching. "Yo, Blake! I saved you a seat. Pit was the model dragon today."

Blake smiled. "I'm not surprised. Hey, Neptune!" She sat down and started immediately comparing notes with Sun.

"Hey, Blake." Neptune suppressed a sigh, realizing that he probably wouldn't get Sun's attention for the rest of lunch. Sage was quick to start chatting with him, which he was grateful for.

After lunch and their evening lectures, Neptune decided to take Freya for another walk around the grounds before dinner. The wind dragon blearily opened her green eyes, standing up slowly and letting out a yawn. "Come on, girl," Neptune urged. "The exercise is good for you. No jogging, I promise."

Freya stretched luxuriously and took her time joining Neptune outside. She shivered a little at the cold. She honestly preferred her nice, warm stall.

Neptune led her around the grassy area near the stables. He noticed two familiar forms nearby and hurried to catch up with them. "Hey, Sun. Hey, Pit."

Sun turned, grinning brightly at his best friend. "Hey, Nep. Just thought I'd take the big guy for another walk before dinner."

"Same." Neptune patted Freya's shoulder. "I gotta say: This was a fun exercise, minus having to deal with Team CRDL."

"Yeah." Sun shook his head. "I still can't believe Cardin tried to grab Storm's fin."

"I can," Neptune snorted. "He's the worst! You know, he bullies Dove."

"Wait, what?" Sun's brows went up. "I mean, Dove said during lunch that he joined that group to avoid getting bullied."

"I saw him hurting Dove during class," Neptune said. "It was enough to cause Nimbus to step in."

"Nimbus stepped up to protect Dove?" Sun let out a whistle. "I guess he's an okay guy, after all, unless our dragons are shitty judges of character."

"I don't think they are." Neptune smiled at Freya, who was yawning again. "Come on, lazy girl. You'll have all night to sleep, and tomorrow's the weekend. You can walk around just a bit more."

Freya sighed, trotting to catch up with them.

Pit warbled encouragingly at her. The cold air felt nice on his face and in his nose. It was just the thing to wake a dragon up.

Freya snorted. She hated when others were peppy while she was sleepy.

"So, I saw you talking with Blake after Oobleck's lecture," Neptune continued. "Is she worried about Pit?"

"Yeah," Sun sighed. "I am too. The more I learn about how the Council works, the less I like our situation. I mean, most of our dragons are flawed in some way. We got Ao Guang's gills, Twiggy's size, Nimbus's sight…"

"And who knows what the Council would do about certain mental issues, like Zircon's skittishness or Tornado's aggressiveness?" Neptune added.

"That too," Sun agreed. "It just seems like a crap deal. I mean, who can look at a dragon and just give an order to throw its life away?"

"The same kinds of people who can look at a Faunus and think they aren't worth anything," Neptune muttered.

Sun nodded, grimacing as he remembered that fight several weeks ago. "True that." The two walked for a little while longer before he spoke up again. "Hey, Nep?"

"Yeah?" Neptune looked over at Sun. He couldn't help but notice the way the setting sun cast a red-gold light over everything, making Sun's gray eyes shimmer and turning Pit's silver freckles into a spattering of fiery sparks.

"Do you think I'm shallow?"

"Huh?" Neptune gaped at his best friend. That was the last question he'd been expecting. "Of course not. Why would you think that?"

Sun shrugged. "I dunno. Like, I think I'm really starting to like Blake, but I can't stop thinking about something Sage said."

"What Sage said?" Neptune asked, his confusion briefly masking the painful pang in his chest.

"He thinks my crush on her is mostly because she's a Faunus, and…he might be right." Sun folded his arms. "I mean, I started thinking this way because I was so hyped to have another Faunus in the group. I was also really excited that one of us has a cool, mysterious past. Is it a bad thing that that's what started this?"

"I mean…" Neptune rubbed at the back of his head, trying to think of the right thing to say without giving himself away. "I think we all can be a little shallow sometimes. I mean, people notice things like how other people look or how cool they are. As long as you also like the person for who they are, there's nothing wrong with liking the other stuff."

He knew that was enough, but he kept going. "So, I don't think you're a shallow person. You're honestly the kindest person I've ever met. I think…I think Blake would be really lucky to have you."

Sun's tail flicked and his chest warmed a little at Neptune's praise. "Thanks, dude. That means a lot." His voice came out softer than he had intended, sounding a little shy and embarrassed, though he wasn't sure why. He turned to smile at Neptune, and noticed something a little sad about his expression. "Hey, what's that face for?"

"Huh?" Neptune stiffened, his cheeks turning red. He desperately hoped that the sunset would hide that. "What face?"

"That mopey face just now." Sun looked at him for a moment, then realized what the problem was. "Aw, dude. You know you're my best friend no matter what, right? Girlfriend or no girlfriend." He punched Neptune's shoulder. "I won't forget about you."

Neptune felt himself smiling in spite of the continuing pain in his chest. "Same."

"Bros come first," Sun asserted. "So, what about you? Any girls you're interested in?"

"Not really," Neptune replied, his voice coming out a little hollow.

As the two continued to talk, Pit glanced over at Freya, giving her a very clear "Are they serious?" look.

Freya shook her head. First Ren and Nora, now this. Were all humans and Faunus this dumb?

Pit sighed. He was less than a year old, but he could easily see things that these much older, smaller beings were totally oblivious to. Maybe, things would move along more if the dragons intervened.

Freya bobbed her head, thinking of Nora's obvious pining. Fixing their horribly-stupid partners was definitely something worth staying awake for. She was in!

Pit flicked his ear. It was decided. They'd spread the word amongst the other RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN dragons. They would all help their partners find the love that was sitting right in front of them (or keep their eyes open for potential mates and take appropriate action then), and make them happy. They deserved nothing less, after all.

 **The dragons have decided to start actively shipping. Be afraid. Be very afraid.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **For writing tips, prompts, top 10 lists, and fandom rants from yours truly, check out my blog at soloragoldsun dot wordpress dot com.**

 **Peace out!**


	41. A Relaxing Saturday

**Rawr, everyone. I'm going to type this author's note quickly, since my laptop has decided to enter its final death throes today. I ordered a new battery, which will hopefully prolong its life until I can afford a new laptop. My stories are all backed up on a flashdrive, thankfully. Never fear!**

 **Enjoy!**

After the dragon switch day, Ruby sent Ozpin an email telling him about Storm's reaction to Cardin, the fact that Cardin had gone for her fin, Mudslide's behavior, and Cardin's threats in the cafeteria. The following morning, she received an email asking her to come for another lesson with Penny on Monday. She agreed right away.

Weiss was sitting up in her bed, looking at her Scroll with a frown.

"What is it, Weiss?" Ruby asked.

"I get automatic updates from the Atlas news stations," Weiss replied. "Apparently, a brood dragon transport was attacked. Three brood dragon hatchlings were stolen."

"Any idea who did it?" Yang asked.

Blake leaned over Weiss's shoulder, reading the article. "The White Fang," she growled. "Typical. Stealing eggs isn't good enough anymore." She put on her bow with a sigh. "I guess it makes sense. If they can find a place for the brood dragons, they can have their own supply of eggs after a year."

"Yes. More eggs to mutilate, if they're all like the people you were with," Weiss grumbled.

"More and more of them are," Blake said, glancing shamefully to the side. "I wish I had figured it out sooner."

Ruby dressed quickly. "I'm gonna get Storm. I know she misses me. You guys coming?"

"Yeah!" Yang said. "Fang'll probably be pretty ticked at me. I'd better bring him some extra treats."

"You go ahead," Weiss said. "I'd like to speak to Blake for a second."

The sisters glanced at each other, then at Blake, who nodded. Shrugging, they left the dorm room.

Once they were gone, Blake's ears flattened apprehensively. "What is it?"

Weiss turned off her Scroll and gave Blake a measured look. "You know that I've tried to be understanding ever since you told us your secret, right?"

"Yes," Blake replied. "And I really appreciate it."

Weiss nodded. "I know you're trustworthy, so… I just need to ask you something. Answer honestly: Did you know about Snowflake?" As she said the name, she couldn't help but hear her mother's screams from that day ringing in her head.

"No," Blake said firmly. "I looked up when it happened, and it was before the botched injections even started. If I had known, I would have left the White Fang right then. Adam knew how I felt about hurting dragons, so he tried to hide it from me whenever something involving dragons happened." She shook her head slowly. "Honestly, I wonder what his long-term plan was for keeping me around…"

Weiss felt her shoulders relax. "That's all I needed to hear." She hesitated before asking: "What exactly was Adam to you?"

Blake let out a long sigh. "He was my mentor, my partner, and a lot more than that. He was kind once, or at least he was good at acting. Then, he wasn't." Her gaze hardened and she shook her head dismissively. "I don't want to think about him."

"I understand," Weiss said. And she did understand, more than Blake probably realized.

Blake looked at Weiss. There was something in her tone that made Blake want to ask more about her life, but she held herself back. _If I don't like thinking about that part of my life, she probably doesn't want to think about hers._ Instead, she asked if Weiss was ready to get their dragons.

Weiss smiled, standing up. "Of course. I hope Specter doesn't make too much of a scene."

"He will," Blake said, opening the door and leading the way down the hall. "He's as much of a diva as his partner."

"I am not a diva!"

"Uh, yeah you are."

"Am not!" Weiss folded her arms and sniffed loudly.

Blake raised an eyebrow and let out an exaggerated sniff while folding her own arms, which caused Weiss to scowl.

"Oh, shut up!" the heiress snapped, prompting a laugh from her teammate. The sound caused her cheeks to flush for some reason.

It turned out that Teams SSSN and JNPR had the same idea as Team RWBY, as they were all taking their dragons out of their stalls when Weiss and Blake arrived. Sun was on the ground under Huo's paws, trying to talk down his snarling partner.

"Ow… Hey, Blake! Hey Weiss!"

"Having trouble, Sun?" Blake asked, noticing with some relief that Huo wasn't putting his full weight on the Faunus.

"Hrk! Nope! I'm good!" Sun groaned while shoving at his dragon's chest. "Move, would you?"

Huo snorted as he backed away. Hopefully, Sun had learned his lesson and wouldn't go leaving him with someone else again.

Nymph padded over with Neptune, lightly nudging her brother's shoulder. Did he remember what they were supposed to do?

Huo groaned, rolling his eyes. This was a stupid idea. Why should he get involved in his partner's mating life?

Nymph huffed, tossing her head. This was to make their partners happier.

Their partners were idiots who deserved to wait until their slow brains figured out what they were supposed to figure out, or so Huo thought. Besides, why were they trying to set Sun up with a wimp like Neptune? The Faunus girl was a better match for him, and Sun already had feelings for her.

Nymph shook her head disparagingly. Blake didn't feel that way about Sun.

Well, Sun didn't feel that way about Neptune!

Not at all? Nymph clicked her tongue skeptically.

Huo paused, considering the idea. It was true that Sun was more physically affectionate with Neptune than he was with other males. Did he perhaps have feelings buried deep down? Why did Huo care? None of this had to do with fighting.

Sun, meanwhile, was watching the two with an amused grin. "You gotta wonder what they talk about."

Neptune smiled fondly. "I'd guess that Huo is cussing Nymph out and she's trying to lecture him."

"That sounds about right." Sun started to unzip his coat when a sharp look from his best friend stopped him. "Ugh. Whatever, _Dad_ ," he grumbled, zipping up again.

The three teams took their dragons to the fields near the stables, since the courtyard was too small for twelve horse-sized dragons to be playing at the same time. Some of the adult dragons were already walking around the grounds on their own. Weiss recognized Meringue as the wind dragon swooped overhead, warbling a greeting.

"So, they're just allowed to roam free when they're moved to the stables?" Ren asked, looking around at the several Rider-less dragons.

"Well, dragons are incredibly loyal," Pyrrha noted. "There have never been cases of a dragon abandoning its partner. Even if one left for a little while, they'd return very quickly. A lot of the older Riders have special whistles used for calling specific dragons."

"Velvet had one for Meringue," Weiss remembered. "It sounds very useful."

Pit watched with a satisfied swish of his tail as Huo and Nymph ran to one side to play, prompting their partners to follow. After his talk with Freya, he had spread the word to all of the dragons. Their partners were doing so much for them, so it made sense to try helping them out with settling down with good mates. And what mates could be better than the friends right here?

Decisively, he padded over to Specter and lightly nudged his shoulder before continuing on.

Storm tilted her head in confusion. Who was she supposed to pair off with? Ruby didn't really seem to have romantic feelings for anyone. In the end, she stayed with Fang, who was being very vocal about how stupid this whole idea was.

Zircon scratched his ear while sticking close to Sage. He wasn't quite sure why they were pairing off, but he elected to stay with Scarlet and Nimbus, since that was what he was used to. He was just glad that everyone was with their partners. He really didn't want to go through yesterday again.

Nimbus chirped, nuzzling Scarlet's hand. What were the others talking about with pairing off their partners with people they liked? Didn't everyone already like everyone?

No dragons paired off quicker than the JNPR dragons. Titan and Twiggy tore off in one direction while Freya jogged with Ao Guang toward a nice, sunny area.

Jaune laughed as his dragon ran ahead. "Hey, Twiggy! Wait up!" He broke into a run after the dragons, Pyrrha close behind him.

Twiggy immediately forgot about any plans when she realized her partner was chasing after her. Roaring joyfully, she turned suddenly so that Jaune ran right into her chest. She reared up, then fell on her side, warbling and batting gently at her partner with her paws.

"Whoa!" Jaune fell into the grass and was immediately pinned by Twiggy's paw. "Ha! Looks like I'm the runt now!" He pushed her away, then jumped onto her side, rubbing her shoulder while she snapped harmlessly at his arm.

Pyrrha stopped chasing Titan to watch, her gaze softening at the adorable scene. It was incredible just how much Jaune and Twiggy loved each other. Before she could appreciate it for too long, however, she suddenly felt something shove her from behind. She hit the ground with an "Oof!" and looked up to see Titan standing over her, his face the picture of innocence.

"Titan!" she gasped with an incredulous laugh. Her shock quickly faded as she stood up. "You won't get away with that!"

Titan crouched down playfully, waiting for Pyrrha to get close before suddenly whipping around, knocking her legs out from under her with his tail and pinning her carefully with one paw. Twiggy was right. This was fun!

Pyrrha giggled helplessly as her dragon's claws tickled her front. "What's gotten into you?"

Jaune rolled over in the grass, grinning as he watched the two. "Looks like he finally loosened up!"

Twiggy, suddenly remembering the plan again, promptly nudged Jaune as hard as she could with her nose as he tried to stand.

Jaune yelped at the sudden shove, barely bracing his hands in time to keep from falling across Pyrrha. His cheeks flushed as he quickly righted himself and scooted away.

Pyrrha sat up with a chuckle. "I think they're getting back at us for leaving them yesterday."

"I think so too." Jaune shook his head at Twiggy. "It wasn't our choice, girl! I promise!"

Meanwhile, Freya had curled up in a spot with less frost on the ground with Ren, while Nora was playing tag with Ao Guang. Ren chuckled as his dragon nudged Nora before promptly bolting away again. "How did we end up with such goofy partners?" he murmured.

Freya yawned, watching her brother and partner through half-lidded eyes. She looked over at Ren, noting the gentle smile on his face. As far as she was concerned, she and Guang had the easiest pair. They already clearly loved each other a lot. They just needed to realize it. If they kept being oblivious, Freya supposed she could just lie down on both of them or something.

Nora squealed as Guang, who was now it, caught up to her and tackled her to the ground. She scratched at his scales, her cheeks flushed with mirth. "You silly boy!"

Ao Guang barked, his tail thumping gleefully against the ground. He was so glad that things were back to normal! Sky hadn't been too horrible, but no one was better than Ren, Nora, and the others.

Nora ran over to Ren and Freya. "Ren, aren't you getting cold lying there? You should move around!" She put her hands on her hips as Freya yawned again. "And as for you, you'll turn into a snow sculpture if you keep that up!"

Storm and Fang were walking around with Ruby and Yang, Fang occasionally heating up his scales when it got too chilly. This prompted Storm to stay close to him while Ruby was stuck to Yang.

"I'm just a human heater, huh?" Yang said, grinning at her sister. "You know, we could take them to the indoor gyms."

"Too many people." Ruby stuck out her tongue. "I'm done dealing with non-friend people for now."

"Still thinking about Cardin?"

Ruby nodded, letting out a sigh. "Yeah. He probably isn't playing with Mudslide right now. I'd let her out myself, but I don't think we're allowed to take other people's dragons normally."

"Probably not," Yang agreed. "Well, Mudslide'll get plenty of exercise next semester when everyone is moved to the stables."

"She still won't be getting any love from Cardin," Ruby lamented. "She really is a good dragon, Yang. It's not fair. And don't you dare say that life isn't fair!"

Yang rolled her eyes. "Please. That's one of the most irritating things to say, right next to 'Because I said so' and 'I told you so.'"

"That's true." Ruby reached over and scratched Storm behind her fin. "Feeling better today, girl?"

Storm bobbed her head, huddling closer to Fang simultaneously.

Fang let out a nervous huff before hesitantly extending his wing to cover the wind dragon.

Sun was sitting in the grass, leaning against a warm-scaled Huo. His jacket was unzipped and he was pointedly ignoring the looks Neptune kept giving him.

Finally, Neptune couldn't keep from speaking up. "If you catch a cold, you'll get no sympathy from me." _Who am I kidding? I'd take care of him all the way through, just like I do every time he gets sick._

"I won't catch a cold," Sun insisted. "See? I got my own personal heater."

Huo snorted, promptly shoving Sun away with his wing.

Sun yelped as he fell on his stomach, which was immediately chilled by the frost-coated grass. He scrambled to his feet, frantically brushing his front off.

Neptune couldn't keep from giving his best friend a smug look. "You were saying?"

"Oh, shut up!" Sun zipped up his jacket begrudgingly. "If there was snow on the ground, I'd teach you a lesson!"

"Challenge accepted!" Neptune said with a grin. "Dragons and Riders snowball free-for-all, first real snowfall."

"I like the way you think," Sun said, electing to sit next to Neptune and lean against Nymph. When Huo glared at him, he shrugged. "Hey, you shoved me off. At least your sister has manners."

Nymph smirked at Huo, who lashed his tail and turned away.

Sage quickly accepted the fact that Zircon was going to curl up around him and not let him move. So, he leaned against his dragon's side and soothingly stroked his neck. "Easy, now," he murmured. "I'm not going anywhere. You're fine."

Zircon whined, rubbing his head against Sage's shoulder, deeply inhaling his partner's scent.

Scarlet ran around with Nimbus for a little while before returning to Zircon and Sage. He leaned against his panting dragon and let out a sigh. "This is a nice day. It's good to relax after the clusterfuck yesterday."

Sage nodded in agreement. "I'm glad things are back to normal, though yesterday was certainly enlightening."

"That's a word for it," Scarlet admitted. "I think…I'll ask Dove to sit with us the next time we see him at lunch."

Sage smiled. "I think that's a fine idea."

Blake, Weiss, and Pit were watching Specter as he bounded around, rolling in the frosty grass and rubbing his face against it, letting out a series of high-pitched squeaks. Weiss giggled quietly. "I never knew ice dragons could act like this."

"Your dad's dragon never plays in the snow?" Blake asked.

"No," Weiss muttered. "Father doesn't exactly let him out to play. Or pet him. Or…really show him any affection." She shook her head. "Now that I'm here, I know just how badly Glacier probably needs those things."

"If your dad wasn't going to take care of a dragon, why have one?"

"It's a sign of prestige," Weiss said, rolling her eyes. "A sign that you're a Schnee. I mean, my little brother Whitley isn't going to be a Rider, but he's still going to get an ice dragon." She sniffed. "A pygmy would be better suited for him, I think."

Blake gave her a sympathetic look. "Is your sister the only one you get along with? I heard some of the recorded lessons she's sent you."

Weiss nodded. "Winter and I get along well. We've both matured enough to understand our situation, and we have the skills necessary to forge our own paths. I do hope that Whitley finds his way, but it's likely that he'll end up as a younger version of my father."

"I guess it's a good thing you're the heiress, then," Blake noted.

Weiss chuckled dryly. "It certainly is."

The morning was spent in such a way until it was time for lunch, when the dragons were escorted back to their stalls.

Pit glanced around, noticing with some disappointment that his plan hadn't worked.

Specter tossed his head. Humans and Faunus were complicated. They probably took much longer to figure things out. This would likely take a long time.

Pit sighed, realizing that the ice dragon was right. Looking back, he honestly didn't know much about mating. He was only a dragonet, after all. Also, he had the distinct impression that mating for him and the other dragons wouldn't be the same as it would be for their partners. He wasn't sure how he knew this. It was just some deep, instinctual feeling.

They'd just have to be patient and diligent with their partners, and figure things out as time went on. In the meantime, he hoped that Blake would give him some red meat with lunch. He had been craving red meat a lot lately.

 **Gotta love them matchmaking dragonets, huh?**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	42. Direct Communication

**Watched the Blake trailer and holy crap! Was that a personal, relevant story about Faunus discrimination? Are we actually getting more of an actual look into this issue? Is it my birthday? You're getting my hopes up, Rooster Teeth. Bonus points if I'm assured that Blake has grown out of her brief slap-happy phase (which she will NOT be going through here, by the way.)**

 **This week, I'm going to recommend a book series I read a few years ago called** _ **The Companions Quartet**_ **by Julia Golding. It takes place in modern times and centers around a secret Society for the Protection of Mythical Creatures. Members of the society are born with an affinity for a certain species of mythical creature and are given a Companion of that species. The main character, Connie, is a universal, meaning that she can communicate with all of them. It's a series with a very environmental message, which I like. And, of course, there are several dragons, including Connie's Companion, a golden dragon named Argand.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

After their last Monday classes, Team RWBY led their dragons toward the earth dragon stables for their first group lesson with Penny. There was a sense of apprehension and excitement in the air as they hurried along.

Weiss in particular was looking forward to this. Due to the top-secret nature of the dragon implant, she had tried keeping her questions to a minimum with Ruby, but she was truly curious to see this piece of Atlesian tech in action again. Also, the idea of being able to talk in a slightly more direct fashion with Specter obviously made her incredibly excited.

Ozpin was waiting for them, without Ragnar for once. He smiled at the team as they approached. "Hello. I trust you weren't followed."

Blake shook her head. She was used to checking for things like that. "No one, sir."

"Good, good." Ozpin nodded. "By the way, Miss Belladonna, you haven't had any threats from the White Fang, have you?"

"Not yet," Blake said. "My guess is that Adam hasn't thought to look for me here. He probably thinks that Pit died and that I'm hiding in the city somewhere."

"Good," Ozpin said. "I'll spread some false rumors to try and lead them away from here, just in case. In the meantime…" He took the implant out of his pocket. "Storm, you know what to do."

Storm trotted over, bowing her head to let Ozpin place Penny on her brow. She purred at the familiar, cool sensation of the metal spreading across her body.

The light turned on. "Salutations. I am the Physical, Emotional, and Neurological Implant. Designated name: Penny. Powering up." After a few blinks, it continued. "Rider recognized. Hello, Ruby Rose."

"Hello, Penny," Ruby replied to the now-familiar greeting.

"New Riders and dragons present," Penny continued as the light started blinking again. "No hostility detected."

"These are my teammates, Penny," Ruby explained. "We're going to practice talking to other people and learning from other dragons through you and Storm. Isn't that cool?"

"I detect that 'cool' is a positive adjective, so I will respond with an affirmative." The light turned yellow. "Awaiting instructions."

Yang was staring at the plate with a slightly uncomfortable look. "That thing's a little creepy. Does anyone else think so?"

"She can hear you, Yang!" Ruby scolded. "Sorry, Penny."

"I am incapable of feeling offended," Penny replied. "Awaiting instructions."

Ozpin smiled encouragingly at Ruby. "Go ahead. Penny will tell you if it needs to rest. I only wish to ask about the results of the switch on Friday. Have fun for now."

"Okay." Ruby looked back at Penny. "I want to talk to Storm. Please read her brainwaves and talk for her like last time."

"Acknowledged." The light flickered, then turned green again.

"Are we talking now? Oh, yes we are! Hi, Ruby! I love you!" Storm said through the implant.

Ruby giggled. "I love you too, Storm."

Blake smiled. "Wow, that's pretty much exactly what I expected her to say."

Storm looked at Blake. "Hi, Blake! I like you too. Not as much as I like Ruby, but you have Pit for that, right?"

The dragons, meanwhile, were stunned. Storm had told them about the implant, but hearing a voice like this coming from her was so weird. They could hear this mechanical voice just as they heard Storm speaking in their language.

Fang shook his head and snarled. He didn't like hearing two voices coming from the same dragon.

"Sorry, Fang," Storm said. "This is for talking to the partners. Can't help it."

Pit, on the other hand, was immediately intrigued. Could Storm translate for them?

"Yes, I can translate," Storm said. "That's what I'm supposed to do today, right Ruby?"

"That's right," Ruby replied, smiling at the stunned looks on her teammates' faces and the confused looks on Fang and Specter's. "Guys, now's your chance to ask your dragons anything!"

Weiss was the first to recover. She looked hesitantly at Specter. "Are…Are you happy, Specter? Am I doing a good job of taking care of you?"

"That goes for me too!" Yang cut in.

"Me too," Blake said.

There was a moment while the three warbled and growled their answers at Storm "Specter hopes you can turn down the temperature in his stall. Pit wants more red meat with his meals. Fang would like a new rubber toy. Other than that, they're happy. They love you a lot, though Fang won't admit it."

Fang snarled at Storm before turning away with a loud huff.

Yang snickered. "Aw, is my little guy embarrassed?" She wasn't even mad when her dragon smacked her with his tail and knocked her to the ground.

"Do you want me to tell you what they're saying as they say it?" Storm asked.

Ruby shrugged. "Why not?"

"Okay, well Specter just called Fang a brute, Fang called Specter a priss, and Pit's telling them to both shut up already," Storm said dutifully.

"That sounds exactly like what I'd imagine them saying," Ruby admitted with a giggle.

"Ooh, I have a question!" Yang said suddenly. "What's everyone's favorite color?"

Weiss gave her a dry look. "Really, Yang? That's the first thing that came to mind?"

Storm chirped as the light blinked. "My favorite color is red, because it makes me think of Ruby!"

"Aw!" Ruby squeaked.

"Fang likes purple," Storm continued. "Since it's the color of his favorite rubber toy, and Yang's eyes."

Fang barked angrily, curling his tail around himself.

"He says it's just because of his toy, but I know better," Storm said calmly. "Specter's favorite color is white, since it's the color of frost. Pit likes red too, since it's the color of meat and apples," Storm finished.

Fang's tail started lashing back and forth.

Storm hunched her shoulders. "I'm just answering their questions… Don't be mad…"

"Okay, okay," Ruby said, patting Storm's shoulder. "Let's not start an argument. We're all friends here."

Yang was grinning at Fang. "You like my eyes, huh buddy?"

Fang stuck his tongue out at his partner, heating up his scales to keep her from touching him.

"What _I_ want to know," Weiss cut in. "Is whether our current training methods are effective for you. Specter, did you understand that I was trying to teach you to use your ice beam today? Does Storm think there are better ways to get the wind dragons flying? Are the fire dragons able to breathe fire yet? How are the water dragons doing, particularly Guang?"

"Slow down!" Storm lay down, putting her paws over her fins. "You're asking too many questions!"

"I'm sorry," Weiss said quickly. "I guess what I'm asking is, are we training you in a way that helps you understand your powers?"

Storm sat up again and nodded. "For me, yes. I know they're trying to get us to fly. I'm just nervous after seeing Nimbus crash. He's excited, but he keeps seeing double when he flies."

Fang yawned and grumbled quietly.

"Fang says that, if anyone's going to breathe fire first, it'll be Huo." She listened to a few more growls. "He also says that Titan still can't heat up his scales. Is that bad?"

The others looked at each other, frowning. That made three JNPR dragons that were having problems. Was Freya's lethargy possibly something to worry about as well?

Reading this train of thought, Blake asked: "Are there any other disabled dragons that you know of?"

Storm nodded. "There's at least one on every team, except for Team RWBY. I feel fine, and so do the others. Right?"

Pit, Specter, and Fang all nodded.

Weiss shook her head slowly. "That's impossible. Beacon keeps their brood dragons in perfect health, and representatives of the Schnee Dust Company personally handle the injections."

"How many disabled dragons are there on average at a school?" Blake wondered.

"One, maybe two every few years," Weiss murmured. "Three at the very most. Few enough for someone like Ozpin to hide them from the Council when graduation comes. There are always flukes, after all. But this…" She folded her arms. "If there is really at least one on each team…there's no way the Council will ignore that."

"And there's definitely more than one on each team," Blake noted. "We have Twiggy, Guang, and maybe Titan on Team JNPR. According to Ren and Pyrrha, both Tornado and Barracuda are somewhat deformed."

Storm warbled nervously. "The Council is bad, isn't it? They want to kill dragons like Ao Guang, don't they?"

Ruby winced, realizing for the first time how much the dragons could probably understand at this point. _How many times have we talked about dragon culling in front of them…especially Twiggy, Nimbus, or Guang?_

"Don't worry, Storm," Yang said. "We'll keep you all safe. Also, I have another question. I know Fang hates having his head pet. Are there any spots we should stay away from on the rest of you?"

Storm chirped. "Well, I don't want my fins to be touched. The same goes for Specter and his frills. Fang does hate when people touch his head, but nowhere else really. Pit doesn't really mind anything." She paused as Pit suddenly barked at her. "Oh, he doesn't want his belly rubbed. Blake doesn't do that anyway, but he thought he'd mention that."

"Noted," Blake said, patting Pit's head.

At this point, Ozpin returned. "We shouldn't strain the unit too much. Miss Rose, please ask Storm about her experiences during the switch."

Storm snorted and started talking without any further prompting. "Cardin is the worst! He didn't give me time to eat, and probably wouldn't have fed me even if Ruby had left the dishes empty. Then, he kept acting like he was gonna hit me when I didn't move fast enough. Then, he bullied Dove and called me and Nimbus names. Then, when he was punished by running extra laps, he yelled at me to keep going faster. Then, he tried to grab my fin when no one was watching!"

She curled her tail around her front paws. "He didn't feed me after putting me in my stall, and didn't let me out again. He also didn't wait for me to get to the stall. He just left the door open and left before I got there! It was so cold in there when I went in..."

Ruby clenched her fists. "Poor Mudslide was so skittish when I had her. She freaked out when I tried to scratch her behind the ear, and acted defensive around everyone." She stared up at Ozpin. "You should have seen the look on her face when I cleaned her stall and gave her treats. She couldn't believe it!"

Pit shuffled one of his forepaws, letting out a thoughtful rumble.

"Pit says he'll try to be friends with her when they move to the earth stables," Storm translated. "I will too. I thought she was just a bully, but she's got it worse than any of us."

"She's just a kid like you," Ruby reminded her. "She only knows what she's been taught."

Ozpin sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I will definitely look into the matter." _Meaning that I will require intensive counseling for Cardin. I don't care how much his father threatens me. If that doesn't work, I'll see about kissing up to the Council so that they may actually relocate Mudslide to a nice broodery._ "I think Penny has done enough for today. You may have it detach, Miss Rose."

"Okay," Ruby said. "Penny, command: detach."

The light flickered a few times, waiting a moment before saying: "Acknowledged." The light went off and the metal retracted into the plate, which then fell to the ground.

Ozpin picked it up, frowning at it before placing it into his pocket. "I couldn't help but overhear the end of your conversation before I came over." He folded his hands behind his back. "You're concerned."

"Well, yeah!" Ruby said. "Is there really at least one disabled dragon on each team?"

"Yes," Ozpin sighed. "And it isn't just here. It's the same at Haven. I've been keeping my eye on Shade and Atlas, but we probably won't know anything from there until the Dragon Festival. I suspect that it's interior sabotage. The only unaffected team is you, and your eggs all came from outside Beacon."

"You're not even trying to keep it a secret from us," Blake noted with some surprise.

"There's no reason to, since you now know," Ozpin said. "Besides, I'm already having you test top-secret Atlesian tech, and am protecting one of your number from the White Fang. You clearly aren't mere children who will gossip about this to everyone they see. Please don't talk about this to anyone, by the way."

"What happens if the Council finds out about this?" Ruby asked. "I thought we were just gonna hide Ao Guang and Nimbus's problems, and hope for the best with Twiggy, but how can we hide this many disabilities in one entire year? What if it happens to the next group of freshmen?"

Ozpin ran a hand through his hair. "I…do not know, Miss Rose. I promise that I will do everything in my power to keep my students and their dragons safe. I wish I could say more."

"Well, we'll be protecting each other too," Yang pointed out, her eyes taking on a reddish tinge.

Ozpin smiled. "Good. That's exactly what friends and teammates are for." He checked his watch. "Well, I think you and your dragons have had enough excitement for one night. Goodnight, girls, and thank you."

Team RWBY was quiet and pensive as they returned their dragons to their stalls and went to their room.

"Do you think any of our dragons have crushes on anyone?" Yang couldn't help but wonder as she sat on her bed. The thought occurred to her randomly as she tried to think of a cheerier conversation topic. "Dang, I wish I'd asked that before."

"Can they?" Weiss wondered. "Elementals are sterile, after all."

"Doesn't mean they don't form romantic attachments," Yang said. "Remember those two injured dragons at the Violet Broodery, Ruby?"

"Oh yeah!" Ruby giggled. "Grif and Simmons, a fire and an earth dragon. They never leave each other's sides."

"So yeah, it can totally happen." Yang snickered at the thought. "That'll be something."

"They're still children," Blake said calmly. "There will be plenty of time to worry about the teen angst and crush phase next semester."

"Omigosh, you're right!" Ruby said with a nervous laugh. "That'll be fun, huh?"

Yang nodded. "At least we can always ask Dad about it. Though, I can't imagine Quake, Tempest, or Salty acting like teenagers."

"I bet it was adorable," Ruby giggled.

The four talked late into the night, decisively avoiding the subject of disabled dragons. Still, they couldn't help but wonder in the backs of their minds if something far more dangerous than the White Fang or Grimm would be awaiting them in the coming years.

 **I would quickly like to address a guest comment I received, because I would like to clear some things up. While I have started shipping some characters, others won't be in romantic situations for a while, such as Yang and Ruby. That does not mean that this fic is an Enabler fic. This is not an Enabler fic. I will never write an Enabler fic. If you see Enabler fics on my page, you can safely assume that my account has been hacked and that I am chained up in a basement somewhere. Please send help if that is the case.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	43. Study Night

**Happy Dragon Friday, everyone! The holiday season is coming for our friends at Beacon. New adventures ahoy!**

 **I'm a little hesitant about this week's recommendation. I like it a lot, but it's the first in a series being sold on Amazon, and the other two books are only being sold in Kindle format. I hope that changes, as I am not getting a Kindle. Ah well. I'll show support for a newer author. It's called** _ **Child of the Daystar**_ **by Bryce O'Connor. Its main character is Raz, a rare winged atherian (humanoid race of lizards) who is raised by a human trading caravan. I'm about eighty pages in, and love it so far. The relationship between him and his adopted family is really built up. Unfortunately, based on the blurb on the back, I know tragedy is going to happen soon. Still, it's very well-written, and it's about a humanoid dragon. Let's just hope the other books get paperback treatment…**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

As winter dragged on, the Riders had to exercise their dragons in the indoor gyms. Weiss and Specter were the only ones who could stand being outside for long periods of time. Temperatures dropped, frost formed on windows, and outdoor classes halted altogether. Instead, the arenas were being built up into a series of heated, temporary dragon shelters.

That was because Yule was rapidly approaching. While some people and dragons would be going to their homes during the holiday season, it was more common at Beacon for families to come to the school and celebrate there. There was an entire building of guest dorms that was mostly empty at any other point in the year. During Yule, it was always filled, though never to the brim. There had been many additions made over the years to prevent that.

Ruby was bouncing up and down in her seat during dinner one night as she looked at her Scroll. "Guys! Guys! Guys! Guys!"

Yang put a hand on top of Ruby's head to stop the bouncing, though she had a similar smile on her face. She had also just gotten the text from their dad. "Easy, Ruby. Just tell them."

"Uncle Qrow and Salty are coming to Beacon for Yule!" Ruby squealed, clutching her Scroll to her chest. "I haven't seen them in so, so, so long!"

The others couldn't help but smile at Ruby's excitement. "That's great," Jaune said. "My parents and sisters will be coming up, along with Dad, Mary, Sapphire, Autumn, and June's dragons."

"Winter and Steele were able to get three days' leave," Weiss added her eyes alight. "She'll be here on Yule Eve."

Pyrrha picked at her food. "My parents might come up if they have time…"

Jaune gave her a concerned look. "Why wouldn't they?"

Pyrrha shrugged. "They've been very busy trying to get a deal with a dragon broodery to do some kind of show. I'm not sure of the details."

"Well, you can hang out with my family!" Jaune promised before turning to Ren and Nora. "And that goes for you guys, too! Not taking no for an answer."

Ren smiled. "I appreciate that, Jaune."

Nora sighed wistfully. "We can have an actual Yule breakfast with all the works…"

"The orphanage had decent breakfasts," Ren said.

"Decent, but not good!" Nora looked at the others. "Every year, Ren would sneak us into the kitchen after dark and make me pancakes for my Yule present, since he knew I liked them so much. That's how he got so good at making them!" She glanced to the side. "I could never do anything like that without setting the kitchen on fire."

Ren touched her shoulder. "You didn't have to. Not being alone on Yule was enough of a gift for me."

Nora's cheeks flushed as she smiled up at him.

"So, what I'm hearing is that we need to spoil you two this year," Jaune said, nodding firmly. "Got it."

"My parents can't get up here," Sun said. "They have plans with relatives in Vacuo. It's cool, though. I got you guys." He ruffled Neptune's hair with one hand.

Neptune smiled at Sun. "Yeah, mine will be, uh, busy as well…" He coughed a little, his heart warming when Sun noticed his expression and gently squeezed his shoulder.

"Ours can't afford the trip to Vale," Scarlet sighed, glancing at Sage. "It's cool, though. We can video chat with them."

"What about you, Blake?" Yang asked.

Blake stiffened, her ears twitching. "I…um…haven't really been in contact with my parents."

The mood of the table grew sober immediately. Sun frowned. "Is it because of-?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Blake said quickly. "It's fine, though. I have you all and Pit. That's enough." She forced a smile and tried to keep her voice from sounding too hollow.

Weiss touched her arm. "I have a feeling that this Yule will be an improvement for the both of us." This would be the first time in years that she'd be able to spend the holidays with Winter since her older sister joined the Atlesian military and their father had told her to never come back. Her father and brother had expressed no interest in coming to Beacon, and Weiss hadn't asked. Her mother probably wouldn't notice the difference, regardless of where she was.

Blake managed a more genuine smile. "I hope so."

"Ooh!" Ruby gasped. "We should all go shopping soon! We can get presents for everyone, and our dragons! It'll be so fun!"

Ren coughed. "Um, money is a thing, Ruby."

"Well, we won't go crazy. And we don't actually have to buy stuff. We can just hang out and look at the lights!" Ruby insisted. "Pleeeeeaaaase? I haven't had a Yule with so many friends before!" She stared at all of them with wide, sparkly, silver eyes.

Of course, no one could say no to that.

"You know, Blake said. "It may be more logical for our group to have a drawing, and just get one gift each. That'll save money, and allow us to put more thought into what we do buy or make."

"Good idea," Ren said. "Any other gifts can be up to the individual. For example, I'm getting Nora something regardless of who I draw, and I know the same will be true for Ruby and Yang."

"Absolutely!" Yang ruffled Ruby's hair. "It's settled, then. Why don't we have the drawing this weekend?"

Scarlet clapped his hands together. "The sales are going to be fantastic! I might need to get new boots just for all the walking I plan to do."

Sage patted his shoulder. "Your regular boots are fine, Scarlet. New ones will give you blisters if you walk too much."

Scarlet grinned sheepishly. "Right as usual."

"Of course, we can't lose focus just because of the approaching holidays," Weiss cut in. "After all, before Yule break comes our exams."

Sun groaned. "And here's the Ice Queen with her fun-killing proclamations."

Neptune rolled his eyes. "We do need to study, Sun."

"Yeah, but we don't have to think about studying when we're not studying!" Sun whined. "That's a waste of brain-space! I already have those stupid dragon anatomy charts making backdrops in my dreams!"

"Oh, you poor thing." Neptune chuckled fondly at Sun's dramatic, horrified expression. "Would it help if I quizzed you?"

"…Would there be video games and ice cream afterward?"

Neptune lightly ruffled his best friend's hair. "I think that can be arranged."

 _If there is any mistletoe hanging in this school during the holidays,_ Blake thought. _I'm going to personally shove those two under a sprig. Multiple times, if I have to!_

…..

"Okay, now point to the lungs." Neptune held up the study chart. "Hey!" He snapped his fingers in Sun's face when he saw the Faunus starting to doze. "Keep that up, and I'll have Nymph spray you!"

Nymph, who was acting as a temporary prop for the boys' backs, rumbled softly in agreement.

The teams had found that studying in their dragons' stalls was a good way to remain focused on their exams while not neglecting their partners. Some dragons, like Nymph, had quickly learned to jolt the studiers awake when necessary. Others, like Huo, got bored quickly and started trying to set the books on fire in order to make the droning stop.

Sun groaned, stretching his arms. He didn't know how Neptune was staying awake. The inside of the stall was super warm and smelled of clean hay and dragons. The steady breathing of Nymph against his back only served to further lull him closer and closer to sleep. "Uh…" He squinted at the chart. "Here?"

Neptune sighed. "No, Sun. Those are the air pouches." He put the paper down, noting the hazy look in Sun's gray eyes. "Okay, so you aren't seeing the chart. Let's do verbal quizzing."

Sun groaned. "Can't we just be done?"

"Answer ten questions correctly, and yes," Neptune said, firmly pushing away thoughts about how ridiculously cute Sun looked when he was sleepy like this. _Focus, moron. Focus._ "Okay, how do water dragons use their water-shooting powers."

Sun yawned loudly. "Uh, they absorb moisture through their scales."

"Good. And?"

"The moisture goes into a compartment below their lungs. There's a tube leading up that stays closed unless they're shooting. When they shoot, their airways close to make room."

Neptune smiled. "See? You know this stuff." He flipped through his notes. "Okay, where is most of the Dust in a dragon's anatomy concentrated?"

"The scales," Sun replied. "They absorb most of the Dust, which is what lets fire dragons heat their scales up and what gives wind dragons an extra burst of wind when they do a wing gust. It's also what gives the scales their different colors."

"Perfect!"

By the time they got to the eighth question, Sun felt himself fading further and further away from consciousness. His head kept nodding forward, and keeping his eyelids open was becoming more and more of a chore. "Ugh… Dude… Can I just…take a quick…?" He shook his head, trying to jolt himself awake.

Neptune sighed, finally taking pity on his friend. "Okay. You can sleep for a few minutes."

Sun yawned before leaning fully back against Nymph. "Thanks, dude…" he mumbled, drifting off almost immediately.

Neptune looked down at him, shaking his head slowly, unable to keep from smiling. "What am I going to do with him, Nymph?" he muttered.

Nymph's fins twitched. She was pretty aware of what Neptune wanted to do at that moment. It was easy to see that her partner's eyes were also drooping and that he was trying to resist the urge to scoot closer to Sun. Closing her eyes, she started to purr quietly, hoping to lull Neptune to sleep.

Neptune placed his notes to the side. His vision was starting to get blurry. The inside of the stall was pretty warm, and a little humid due to the misters. He and Sun had needed to remove their coats once inside. He blinked slowly, staring down at Sun. Maybe, he could just rest his head on Nymph's back for just a little bit…

….

When Sun woke up, he immediately realized that it was dark outside. He started to sit up, rubbing his stiff neck, when a warm sensation made him pause. It was pressed against his side, draped lightly over his midsection, and resting on top of his head. He blinked a few times to clear his vision, then realized what the warmth was: Neptune.

From the looks of it, he had dozed off after Sun and instinctively snuggled against him in his sleep. Sun shifted a little, trying to get up quietly, which caused Neptune to mumble something and hug him closer, nuzzling his cheek against Sun's hair.

Sun's face were burning, even as he inwardly chuckled at the situation, because _of course_ Neptune was a sleep-cuddler. He tried once more to dislodge himself, which only evoked another sleepy murmur from his best friend. He wondered if he could get Nymph to do something, but a quiet snore quickly told him that she was even more out of it than her partner was.

 _Okay,_ he thought. _How do I get out of this without waking him up and making things weird?_ After another half-hearted attempt to move away, he sighed. It looked like he'd have to just lie there, pretending to be asleep until Neptune woke up. He'd fake being asleep until after Neptune let go, and would act like he knew nothing, because poor Neptune would probably have a panic attack trying to explain himself otherwise. _He always does freak out over stuff like that._

With that decided, Sun allowed himself to relax against Nymph and Neptune again. His head ended up on his friend's shoulder, and he closed his eyes.

As he rested, he listened to and felt the steady breathing of both Neptune and Nymph. Their breaths were totally in sync, and Sun marveled yet again at how perfect they were for each other, despite the obvious difficulties. A patient, gentle dragon like Nymph was just the partner for someone as perpetually nervous as Neptune.

Sun knew that, before coming to Beacon, Neptune had always been keen on putting up a front of coolness when around anyone. He'd flash that shining grin, say a snappy one-liner, and the girls would just melt. Only Sun, Sage, and Scarlet had ever seen that shy, socially-awkward side that he tried so desperately to hide.

With their arrival at Beacon, a lot of Neptune's insecurities had been forced to the foreground. Sun honestly thought that that was a good thing. In his mind, Neptune's faked coolness had never held any appeal. The kindhearted, goofy, aquaphobic boy was the person Sun was friends with.

And, if he was going to be totally honest, that was the guy who would really score with the ladies. Between that genuine, nervous smile that only his friends got to see, his concern for everyone around him, and this new knowledge that he cuddled people while asleep, he would basically be the perfect boyfriend if he let himself open up to the right person.

 _Maybe I can set him up with the Ice Queen,_ Sun mused. _He'd be just the person to thaw her out._

Neptune started to move, and Sun quickly made sure his muscles were relaxed. He felt Neptune shift, felt his head perk up slightly, then felt his back stiffen. Neptune was totally still for a moment, then slowly moved away. His arms drew back and he carefully moved Sun so that he was just leaning against Nymph.

Sun was just trying to figure out when to pretend to wake up when Neptune did something unexpected. For a brief moment, Sun felt his friend's hand on his face, brushing his hair back in a quick, gentle gesture that he would have missed if he had been even slightly drowsy. All of a sudden, Sun found himself feeling incredibly warm and incredibly confused.

He listened as Neptune picked up his notes and put them away. When his friend shook his shoulder, he groaned, opening his eyes slowly. "Huh…?"

Neptune lightly swatted his arm. "Looks like your laziness rubbed off on me. Come on. Let's head back to the dorm." _Why does he have to look this cute when waking up? It's not fair!_ He was still trying to dissipate the blush on his face and push aside thoughts of how nice Sun had felt nestled against him. Thank goodness his best friend slept like the dead, or things would have been really, really awkward.

"Kay." Sun got up, letting out a sigh of relief as he was finally able to stretch fully and crack his stiff neck. "Is it too late for the ice cream and video games?"

"Since it's midnight, and Sage and Scarlet are likely asleep, yes," Neptune said, shouldering his backpack. "It'll have to wait till tomorrow."

Sun sighed. "Fine, but this means we get to take the break before studying tomorrow! Then, we get another break after."

"That's not how it works."

"Yes, it is!"

Neptune rolled his eyes. He gently patted his sleeping dragon's shoulder before leading Sun out of the stall.

As the sound of their footsteps faded, Nymph opened her eyes and let out a long, annoyed sigh. Getting these two oblivious idiots together was going to take forever!

 **This was shameless Seamonkeys fanservice. I will readily admit to that. There aren't enough slowburn fics involving these dorks, and it just feels so perfect in this AU! Also, Michael and Kerry ship it, which is awesome.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	44. The Drunken Rider

**Rawr, everyone! It's Dragon Tuesday, and I'm freaking exhausted. Started the second job this week. Combine that with the fact that I can't fall asleep at certain times, even when exhausted, and have to get up early for both my jobs, and you get a person who has gone four days on 2-4 hours of sleep average a night. Know what that leads to? Falling asleep while walking. It's a horrible experience, and I don't recommend it to anyone. Ever. Don't do it, okay?**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

The door to the inn slammed open and a drunken, green-faced man was thrown unceremoniously onto the muddy ground. He groaned, his breath turning to bubbles in the bitter muck. His limbs weren't working right. This was the part of the night when he was supposed to lie down somewhere and sleep off everything he had consumed.

He felt a much gentler touch to his side as a familiar, webbed forepaw rolled him onto his back. He was too out of it to be angry about the fact that mud was now staining his cape.

"Sssorrry," a low, whale-like voice murmured. The water dragon was well-practiced at saying that word. He had to say it on his Rider's behalf at least a dozen times a week. Rain glistened on his cerulean scales, which were covered with a spattering of black freckles on his back. His pale blue, white-speckled underbelly glistened in the places where it wasn't spattered with grime.

The innkeeper huffed angrily, ignoring the dragon's apology completely as he continued to glare at the man in the mud. "Don't think having that great sea serpent will protect you if you show your face here again!"

The water dragon breathed a long-suffering sigh as the door slammed, then bent down to tend to his partner. Carefully, he lifted the groaning man into one of his forepaws and carried him toward the woods at the edge of town.

Once they were far away from prying eyes, the dragon found a large, flat rock to place his Rider on. With claws that shouldn't have been so nimble considering the webbing, he undid the tie to the tattered cape, set it aside, and unbuttoned the human's shirt.

Groaning, the man roused himself just enough to shrug his shirt off. He kicked off his shoes and fumbled with his pants until they were also gone.

Nodding with satisfaction, the dragon placed the muddy clothes on one side of the rock, took a deep breath, and let out a gentle stream of warm water over both his partner and the clothes. After a few gushes, he rolled the human over, flipped the clothes, and repeated the process.

Rain was still falling and the man was starting to shiver, so the dragon undid one of his saddle bags, withdrawing a thick blanket to drape over his partner, then extended one wing to shield him and his clothes.

The man snuggled gratefully under the blanket, not even noticing the fact that he was lying on a rock. "S-Salty…?" he mumbled.

Salty bent down and nuzzled his partner. "Rrrow. Dum."

Opening one reddish eye, Qrow Branwen let out a humorless laugh. "Yeah… Shoulda realized…that barmaid…had a wedding ring…"

Salty shook his head, not saying anything else. Instead, he shifted closer, lying down and placing his head between his paws. It looked like this would be another night of not being in a nice, warm stall. He could handle it, of course, but he worried about Qrow. It was freezing outside, and a human body could only handle so much.

Worse still, Qrow was tired. Salty knew that they were on an important mission. He overheard a lot of Qrow's talks with Ozpin, and Qrow filled him in on whatever he didn't hear. Right now, their job was finding out who the White Fang was working for.

Apparently, the crazed group of Faunus had started stealing eggs and Dust in huge amounts, even going so far as to attack brooderies. Qrow had mentioned that the one next door to Taiyang's home had been attacked. Thankfully, no one had been hurt. Salty didn't know what he would have done if Quake, Tempest, or any of the others were to die while he was halfway across Remnant.

Worse still, he didn't know what he'd do if Qrow died. It was common for dragons to snap entirely in response to the death of their partner. Salty wasn't sure what he would do. He just knew that he had to keep Qrow safe, whether it was from Grimm, crazed Faunus radicals, or his regular drunken stupidity.

As for the White Fang, Ozpin was sure that they had a sponsor of some kind. That was the best explanation for their sudden change in objective and their more advanced machinery. There was also a high number of humans committing similar robberies.

There were also rumors of a lone, dark-haired rider on a gold fire dragon.

Salty shifted uncomfortably at the thought. He still remembered the last time he had seen Phoenix. His sister and he had listened while their Riders yelled at each other. Raven was refusing to leave the rogue Rider group she had become the leader of, and had accused Qrow of not being loyal and not choosing the right side. Qrow expressed anger at Raven for not seeing Yang, and gave a not-so-veiled threat involving telling Ozpin of her whereabouts if she kept interfering with his investigations.

Phoenix had been evasive when asked what "sides" Raven was talking about. She was a very secretive dragon, though she hadn't been before. The secrets had started after Team STRQ left Beacon, after Raven and Phoenix suddenly disappeared following the birth of Raven's daughter, only to be seen occasionally when she and Phoenix chose to be found by their brothers. Was she the dragon people kept seeing, or were she and Raven involved in some other secret plot? Salty didn't know if he could handle more than one.

Qrow trembled under the blanket, not quite waking up. "Salt…" he moaned.

Salty immediately lowered his head to touch his muzzle to his partner's back. Opening his mouth, he began to sing softly in the language of whales. He had first heard the giant mammals singing when he and Qrow had gone to Menagerie several years ago to bust a Dust smuggling operation. Having never been in an ocean before, Salty had eagerly gone as deep as he could while Qrow drank on the boat. There, he had heard the most beautiful music known to any living being. The mighty creatures, which were even bigger than the largest dragon, sang in deep, ancient voices that could only carry through the darkest depths of the sea. Now, Salty used what he had learned to soothe his partner to sleep as needed. He wasn't as good as the whales, but he wasn't terrible, and Qrow didn't seem to know the difference.

When the following morning came, Salty's eyes were drooping with exhaustion. Still, he kept his wing erect and his head up as his partner began to stir.

Qrow groaned, rubbing his aching head as he sat up. He was sore and mostly naked. Had he gotten lucky, last night?

The smell of fishy water answered his question, and he breathed a sigh as memories of the previous night returned. "Mornin'."

Salty yawned loudly and turned to look at him.

Qrow shook out his damp hair, using the blanket to rub himself down a little more. His nose was stuffy, and his head was still muzzy from the alcohol of the previous night. "Sorry, boy," he mumbled, patting his dragon clumsily on the side. "Got…Got us kicked out again, huh?"

Salty snorted, narrowing his sea-green eyes.

Qrow flashed a hopeful grin. "Come on. You still love me."

Letting out a short growl, Salty folded his wing, causing a fresh cascade of freezing water built up over the course of the night to fall on Qrow's head. He felt a little bad when his Rider started shaking again, but not much.

"Okay, okay! I deserve that." Qrow sneezed, wiped his nose on the blanket, and stood up. "Look, I'll- Whoa…" He swayed where he stood and quickly planted his feet further apart. "I'll make it up to ya, okay?" He walked over and patted his dragon's shoulder. "Come on. We're going to Beacon for Yule, remember? I'm putting this mission on hold for the sake of family. That's something, huh? You remember those nice stalls at Beacon, right?"

Salty flicked a head fin. He did remember. He missed Beacon. Why couldn't they just go back to Beacon? Or go back to staying in one spot and teaching kids at Signal? Salty had liked that, and the kids had loved him during his short time there. Of course, teachers couldn't make themselves stupid drinking alcohol every night, so that was never going to happen.

He quickly shook himself from those toxic thoughts. He understood why his partner drank. He knew that Qrow was in constant pain. Summer had been his best friend, after all, and he and Salty had been far away when she died. They hadn't even heard about it until weeks later. Salty still remembered just how broken Tempest had been. If dragons were able to drink alcohol, would she have become like Qrow?

Add in the fact that Raven seemed to have turned her back on everyone, and it was no wonder why Qrow wanted to make himself feel nothing. He did his job for Ozpin, and he loved and cared for Salty as well as someone like him could. That was all that really mattered.

Qrow took another blanket from the saddle bags, dried himself off, and hurriedly dressed up in his cleanest set of riding clothes. He adjusted the waterproof chaps with a grimace. "Shoulda just worn this yesterday…" Just in case, he took out his weapons belt, which held his signature broadsword along with a special ice Dust pistol, and strapped it to his side. Once his other clothes were packed, he tightened the saddle straps, which went around the base of Salty's chest and around his legs, and climbed on to the saddle, sitting down at the very beginning of the dragon's long, thick neck. "Okay, Salty. Let's keep going."

They walked along the edge of the village before taking off, Qrow setting a course for Vale, even as he wondered if going home for Yule was really a good idea. He had a lead that something fishy was happening in Atlas, something involving the Schnee Dust Company. Part of him wanted to go there and just keep looking for clues.

But Tai had told him how excited Ruby had been about his promise to come home. He couldn't disappoint the kid by not showing up. He disappointed himself and his dragon enough on a daily basis. He wouldn't do the same to Ruby and Yang.

 _Besides,_ he thought with a nostalgic grin. _I can't miss the chance to see those new little dragons._ He still remembered when Salty had only been a little, puppy-sized hatchling who very quickly developed a habit of biting down on Qrow's cape and trying to drag him away from any trouble the human got himself into, from midnight brawls to raids on the professors' alcohol cabinet.

One interesting thing he had learned was that Ruby was apparently teammates with a Schnee, so perhaps Qrow could find something out there anyway. He was also curious to see if her ice dragon was as much of a stuck up bastard as that Winter woman's dragon was. He hoped for his nieces' sakes that the girl wasn't anything like her sister.

"Hell, we might have to see them at Yule," Qrow muttered.

Salty let out a questioning warble.

"Ah, sorry. Just talking to myself. I was just wondering if we'd run into the Ice Queen at Beacon."

Salty growled, rolling his eyes. He hoped not. Steele was the biggest prick he had ever met, and it wasn't just because of those deadly spines on his back! Or those sharp blue eyes. Or those scales that glistened like sunlight on a school of silvery fish in a clear stream. Or…

Nope! He wasn't about to go _there_ again!

They flew for a few hours before the sound of screams caught their attention. Immediately, Salty banked to the left, peering at the ground. His eyes narrowed and he roared when he saw a pack of shadows grouping at the edge of a distant town.

Qrow cursed quietly, adjusting his goggles. "Okay, pal. Let's give 'em a rain of death!"

Salty swooped down, glaring at the Grimm. It looked like a pack of Beowolves. Several people were already running deeper into the town. He didn't see anyone near the main pack. A few Grimm were running into the city, but they'd deal with them next.

Opening his mouth, the water dragon gathered all the water he had absorbed over the course of the night and unleashed it on the Grimm in a torrent, pressing them into the mud. He flew in a circle. Then, at Qrow's signal, he did a loop going low so that he was upside down right above the Grimm.

Qrow tightened his grip on the saddle while pointing and shooting his Dust pistol at the drenched Grimm. Just three bullets were enough to coat the monsters in ice, freezing them in their places.

Salty completed the loop, then flew low, stomping on the frozen Beowolves one by one, roaring with satisfaction as they dissolved into shadow.

Qrow jumped from his dragon's back, rushing down the path into town. A Beowolf was creeping up on a house, raising its forepaw just as Qrow came up behind it and ran it through. A scream caught his attention, and he quickly darted toward the center of town.

There, three Beowolves were pouncing on whatever they could find. A few humans and Faunus lay dead in the street. Gritting his teeth, Qrow aimed at the furthest one, shooting it square in the chest, causing it to dissolve without Salty's help.

The other two, sensing his anger, turned toward him, both running at him at once.

Qrow rolled out of the way, slashing at the ankles of one in the process. He quickly reloaded his gun, shooting it in the head, then stabbing the other through the chest.

He withdrew his weapons and looked around. He didn't hear any sounds. Salty flew overhead. "Salty! Sweep!"

Salty flew around the town and the surrounding woods, but found no Grimm. He flew back over to Qrow, finding a relatively-spacious spot to land. "Gud," he declared.

Qrow grinned, walking over and patting his dragon's shoulder. "Good boy, Salty." He led his dragon off to the side, allowing people to carry off the dead and injured.

Of course, the leaders of the town were eager to thank the brave Dragon Rider for saving them. Qrow politely declined most rewards. The one thing he did take was an offer of free food and shelter from the local innkeeper.

"I can set you up in our finest room," the man said, spreading his hands jovially. "How'd you like that?"

 _Finest room, eh? Hm. I wonder just how fine the maids are._ "I'd…" Qrow trailed off, noticing his dragon giving him a very pointed glare. "Actually, just put us in the nicest stall you got. I'm more comfortable sleeping next to my dragon. And if you know someone who can wash my clothes and refill my leather polish, that'd be great."

Salty bobbed his head, a relieved smile on his muzzle. "Rrrow gud," he commended.

Qrow couldn't help but smile back. No matter how nice it was to sleep in a bed (especially with a propositioned barmaid at his side), he would gladly give it up to have his partner look at him like that all the time.

 **I'm having a lot of fun coming up with the personalities of the adult dragons. I decided that Salty would either be as much of a hellion as Qrow, or that he needed to adopt the role of the sensible one for the good of himself and his partner at an early age. The latter appealed way more.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	45. Exam Week

**Rawr, everyone! It is freaking hot outside. Seriously, it's been like in the 90's for the past week. Where the hell is my fall weather, yo?! It's almost October! This is insane!**

 **Today's dragon of the week is King Ghidorah from the** _ **Godzilla**_ **franchise. Sometimes a dragon, sometimes a winged hydra, sometimes an alien, Ghidorah is a three-headed, gold-scaled, lightning-breathing badass who is always a match for the King of Monsters whenever they fight. Fun fact:** _ **Giant Monsters All Out Attack**_ **is the only movie that portrayed him as a good guy. He was a villain in literally every other movie he's been in. He also has other incarnations, such as Monster X/Keizer Ghidorah in** _ **Final Wars**_ **and Desghidorah in** _ **Rebirth of Mothra**_ **. I'm looking forward to seeing him, Mothra, and Rodan in the upcoming movies. Let's hope we actually get more than ten minutes of monster fighting this time around… *still salty about the 2014 suckfest***

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

The day before exam week was a day of pain, suffering, and definite neglect toward personal health. This was especially clear in the RWBY dorm, where a loud thump from the bathroom caused Ruby, Yang, and Blake to look up with concern.

"Weiss? Are you okay?" Ruby called.

When there was no answer, Yang ran over and started slamming her shoulder against the door. Her eyes turned red as the frame started to creak.

"S-Stop…" Weiss's voice called weakly from inside. "Just…one moment…"

There was a sound of wet footsteps and a rustle of towels. Finally, the door opened and a very shaky Weiss stepped out of the bathroom. Her pajamas were wrinkled, and her hair was still mostly-wet.

Yang immediately was at her side, helping her to her bed. "Did you faint just now?" she asked, going into full Big Sister Mode.

"Just…for a moment…" Weiss gritted her teeth, pushing back the nausea she felt. She felt like she was burning up. "Can I have some water, please?"

Blake was already fishing a bottle of water from the small fridge. She opened it and handed it to Weiss. "Did you go to sleep last night, like we told you to?"

"Yes!" Weiss said, narrowing her eyes.

"For how long?"

"…An hour."

"Sweet Dust, Weiss!" Yang groaned. "You need sleep in order to _live_. You do know that, right?"

Weiss took a drink of water. "Needed to go over that chart again," she murmured.

"Weiss, you know this stuff better than anyone!" Ruby said. "But you'll fail all the exams if you fall asleep during class."

"And probably get sick. Not that that's important, or anything," Yang muttered, rolling her eyes.

Weiss glanced to the side. "I just wanted to make sure."

"Well, stop making sure!" Yang snapped. "You're sleeping until morning."

"But-"

"Nope! No buts! Sleep, now! I will knock you out if I have to."

"She will," Ruby whispered. "She did it to Uncle Qrow one time."

Weiss glanced at Yang's clenched fists, felt another wave of dizziness, and decided to give in. With a groan, she fell back on the bed, already anticipating how long it would take to brush her tangled hair out the following morning.

Satisfied, the rest of Team RWBY returned to their studying for another hour before they all started to get ready for bed. Blake glanced over and saw that Weiss's eyes were still open. She approached, placing a hand on her teammate's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Weiss sighed. "I'm exhausted, but…I'm too nervous to sleep." She hated that tests could make her like this. After growing up in an environment where she was expected to be perfect all the time, she found herself needing to be the same way in any situation, especially academia. If she didn't, there was a chance that she would fail. If she failed, she'd be kicked out of Beacon. If she got kicked out of Beacon, she'd have to go back home, and-

"Maybe…I can help," Blake said hesitantly. She almost didn't want to offer this, since it would involve revealing yet another secret about herself. But Weiss needed to relax, and what Blake had in mind had always worked in the past when her mother had done it for her.

Weiss looked up. "How?" _Sleeping pills would be nice…but those will make me drowsy in the morning…_

Blake's ears flattened and she could feel the beginning of a blush on her cheeks. She was grateful that it the lights were off. "Scoot over."

Weiss complied, though she made a sound of surprise when she felt the bed sink. "What-?"

"Just lie still," Blake muttered. "My mom used to do this when I had nightmares as a kid. If it doesn't work, we can think of something else." Cautiously, trying to keep her heart rate steady, Blake drew Weiss close so that the heiress's head was resting in the crook of her neck, just above her chest. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and let it out in a low, quiet, rumbling purr.

Weiss was completely stiff as Blake pulled her close. Thanks to Sun, Ruby, and Nora, she was a little more used to hugs by this point, but this felt like something else entirely. Was this really something mothers did for their children? For a moment, she thought of her own mother, but quickly pushed the thought aside.

Then, the first purr reached her ears and she found herself incapable of focusing on anything else. It was a deep, gentle sound that vibrated ever so slightly against her chest, soothing her nervously-beating heart. She blinked once, twice, then shut her eyes as Blake's chest rose and fell in a second long, slow rumble.

Blake felt her teammate slowly, slowly relax against her. The quick, nervous breaths grew longer and steadier. The tense muscles eased up. Another breath, another purr.

It was interesting. Blake had always figured that Weiss would be rather cold to the touch. While the heiress's skin was cool initially, it warmed quickly as she snuggled further under the blankets and against Blake.

Blake yawned, feeling herself becoming drowsier. Her purrs grew quieter and shorter, then stopped altogether. At this point, Weiss's breathing was steady and deep, signaling that she was asleep. Pulling the blankets further up, Blake quickly followed.

Yang and Ruby watched from their beds. "Aw, that is the cutest thing ever!" Ruby whispered, trying not to squeal.

"We should totally get her to do that for all of us once exams are over," Yang muttered.

"Somehow, I don't think she'd like that."

"True." Yang yawned widely. "Sleep well. Nothing but fun times this week."

Ruby groaned, putting a pillow over her head. "I don't want it… Yang, make it Yule already!"

Yang sighed. "Wish I could, sis. Wish I could."

…

It was Tuesday when Sage finally caved and agreed to carry Scarlet. He held his overly-dramatic, dead-eyed teammate as easily as he would hold a stack of textbooks, not paying any mind to the odd looks and snickers he was treated to in the hallway. As they approached Port's classroom, Sage carefully set Scarlet down.

"Okay. Time to focus."

Scarlet groaned, slumping dejectedly against his friend's side. "I can't, Sage! It's too difficult, too horrible. Tell Nimbus I love him… I am far too young to- EEP!"

Both Scarlet and Sage jumped a foot in the air as Port suddenly emerged from the classroom, smacking a ruler against the doorframe. "Oh, would you stop being so dramatic? It's an exam, not a Nuckelavee herd! Get in here, take out your pencils, and be quiet."

Scarlet and Sage exchanged nervous glances as they entered the room. "I thought Nuckelavees were solitary," Scarlet muttered. "Are there actually herds of them?"

"Dust, I hope not!" Sage replied with an inward shudder.

This particular test was on fire dragon anatomy. Everyone was hunched over their papers, filling in circles and writing answers next to numbers for the next hour. Weiss was the first to finish, with Blake quickly following. The other fire students were next, followed by everyone else. Scarlet had the thousand-yard stare by the time he turned his paper in.

Team SSSN's study session that night was in Nimbus's stall. Scarlet was leaning against his dragon's side. "Three more days… I don't think I can take this…"

"Same," Sun groaned. "Why do exams make up so much of our grade? Why?! When will we have to fill circles or write essays when we're Riders?"

"Well, it's important for us to remember the information," Neptune pointed out. "And Riders do have to write requests for grants on occasion, depending on what mission they wish to go on."

"Shut up, nerd."

"Intellectual."

Sage took out a textbook. "Come on. Our history exam is tomorrow, and you know how much Oobleck loves essays."

"Argh!" Sun leaned back against the wall, allowing his head to thunk against the wood. "Nimbus, be glad you don't have to deal with any of this."

Nimbus warbled softly, nuzzling his partner's shoulder while looking at the others with concern. They looked tired and stressed out. Was it because of these books? Should he destroy them? Taking a deep breath, he let out a burst of wind, which flung the books and papers to the other side of the stall.

"Nimbus!" Scarlet yelped. "What was that for?!"

Sun grinned. "Looks like your dragon also understands that these exams are bullshit. I say we listen to him and go play video games."

Neptune stood up and started gathering the papers. "Not an option, Sun. Don't pout! This will all be over soon."

Scarlet patted Nimbus's shoulder. "Don't do that again, okay boy?"

Nimbus put his head down with a snort. He didn't get it. These books and papers were making them sad, but they kept poring over them anyway. It was a good thing dragons never did weird things like that.

…..

Ren, going against his usual rule, made pancakes twice a day, every day during exam week. He figured that Nora and the others deserved something good to fuel them at the beginning of the day, and something to look forward to at the end. Also, it allowed the team to eat alone, without hearing the other students grumbling and moaning about how they were all doomed to fail their next test.

Nora was the first to trudge into the kitchen at dinner time on Thursday. Jaune and Pyrrha followed a minute later. All three sat down at the table, looking thoroughly defeated.

"Chocolate chips and strawberries?" Ren asked without turning around.

"Yep!"

"Uh-huh."

"Yes, please!"

Smiling to himself, Ren poured some pancake batter onto the hot pan, waited for it to start bubbling, then sprinkled on some chocolate chips and chopped up strawberries. He preferred to do it this way, rather than mixing them in with the batter. They had a tendency to get burnt if they were just mixed in and subjected to the pan at the very beginning. It also meant that he could eat his plain, as he preferred them.

Once the pancakes were finished, the team sat around the table, eating silently. Nora finished first, letting out a loud yawn. "Know what? I'm just going to bed," she muttered. "I don't even care. If I gotta study, I'll do it in the morning."

"I'm with you," Jaune sighed, picking at his last flapjack. "I feel like I haven't slept right at all this week."

"Just one more day," Pyrrha said encouragingly. "Then, we can sleep in, play with our dragons, and go Yule shopping." The teams had drawn their gift exchange partners the previous week. Pyrrha had gotten Blake, so she anticipated browsing at length through Tukson's bookstore. She also wanted to get something for Jaune. Ren and Nora too, of course. Actually, she wanted to just buy gifts for everyone. She had the money, but wasn't sure if such an obvious show of her wealth was a good idea.

 _Maybe just Blake and my teammates,_ she decided. _After all, we did say that we were allowed to buy for other people as well._

Ren was lightly petting his best friend's hair. "Come on, Nora," he murmured. "Don't fall asleep. You know I can't carry you."

"You…saying I'm fat…?" Nora yawned, no true anger behind her words.

"Of course not. Muscle weighs far more, and you're a strong, scary little fighter," Ren said calmly.

"Good answer…"

"Speaking of fighting, do you think we'll start those self-defense practices over Yule break?" Jaune wondered.

"It would probably be a good idea," Pyrrha noted. "It'll give us head start to the next semester. Also, some of us do have Riders as relatives."

"I'm sure my sisters would love an excuse to kick my butt," Jaune said with a snort.

"Do sisters need an excuse?" Ren asked.

"Well, no…"

"You come from a family of Riders, right?" Nora chirped. "What are the dragons like?"

Jaune, perking up a little, took out his Scroll and flipped through until he got to a picture of his father. "Well, this is my dad, Johann Arc, and that's Ignis."

Pyrrha looked at the picture with a smile. Johann looked like an older version of Jaune with a bit of scruff and darker blue eyes. The fire dragon was a large, strong-looking creature with long black horns, dark red scales, and brass-colored eyes.

The next picture was of an older girl with brown hair and blue eyes, standing next to a copper and white fire dragon with blue eyes. "That's Mary and Brazier."

Then came a picture of a slightly younger girl with short blonde hair and blue eyes, and an earth dragon with dark brown, almost black scales, one green eye, and one brown eye. "That's Sapphire and Ore."

Then came a smirking brunette with soft hazel eyes. She stood near a pale orange fire dragon with a red stripe running from its muzzle to the tip of its tail, and striking gold eyes. "That's June and Blaze."

Finally, there was a girl who looked to be only a few years older than Jaune, and was sporting dyed orange hair and blue eyes. Her dragon was a pale green wind dragon with patches of gold and blue, and soft yellow eyes. "That's Autumn and Flurry."

"No water dragons, huh?" Ren asked.

"The most recent water dragon belonged to my great uncle," Jaune said. "My family has always had an affinity for fire dragons, with only a few exceptions."

"It shows," Pyrrha commented. "Titan obeys you just as much as he does me."

"Well, that's probably because of how often we practice together," Jaune muttered, rubbing bashfully at the back of his neck. "I'm no dragon whisperer, not like Ruby."

"She and Storm certainly do share a special bond," Ren noted with a smile. "And I saw Mudslide when we did that switch. She was calmer with Ruby than I'd ever seen her before."

There was a pause as everyone thought about poor Mudslide. Then, they all stood up to clean. Thinking sad thoughts wouldn't help anything, and it certainly wouldn't get them through the rest of their exams.

They just had to take things one step at a time. Once they got through Friday, they could start thinking about new problems. At this point, it seemed that there was no end to them.

 **Weiss fainting in the shower is based on a personal experience of mine in college. I went for three days with only an hour of sleep each day, due to crazy exams. (Seriously, I had a fifteen-page take home essay, a packet of multiple choice questions in class, and several more essays in class. This was for ONE CLASS!) I ended up hallucinating, and then passing out in the shower. The sad thing is that I went right back to studying after I recovered. That is one thing about college that I will certainly not miss.**

 **Anyhoo, yes you will be meeting the Arc dragons in a few weeks. All the family dragons are coming together! Yay!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	46. Family Reunion

**Rawr, everyone! We're back with Dragon Tuesday. This week sees a return of some greatly-missed individuals, and a lot of family fluff.**

 **Enjoy!**

Ruby was bouncing up and down, unable to keep from letting out an excited squeak every other minute. Her gaze was fixed on the distant sky, where two small specks got steadily bigger. "EEEE! Yang, look! Look! They're getting closer!"

Yang smiled fondly at her little sister while also keeping her eye on the specks. "I see them, sis. I see them."

A little ways back, Weiss and Blake were observing their eager teammates, who had insisted that they come to meet their dad. Both had wistful, slightly sad expressions on their faces. Neither one asked the other why they were sad. They didn't have to. Neither of them would be greeting their fathers like this.

With the end of exams came the beginning of Yule break. During this time, family members were allowed to come to Beacon to spend the holidays with the students and dragons. The arenas had all been repurposed into dozens of temporary dragon stalls. An entire building of empty dorm rooms had been prepared for guests. Extra stable hands had been hired for the season, specifically for the purpose of taking care of visiting dragons, as well as any dragons whose partners chose to go home for the holidays and couldn't take them along.

It was expected that freshmen students would stay at Beacon, since it was generally best to wait a few more weeks before introducing the dragons to transports, even if their families did have brooderies. Cardin Winchester was the only freshman to go home despite this, leaving poor Mudslide behind.

For many of the other students, family members were beginning to trickle in. Taiyang, for example, had gotten word to Ruby and Yang that he would be bringing Quake and Tempest two days after exams. "Gotta give you time to rest up," he had said. "After that, it's family time!" Others, like Winter, would not be arriving until right before Yule.

Some would not be coming at all. Blake closed her eyes, thinking of her mother and father back home on Menagerie. Were they thinking of her? _What_ were they thinking of her? They probably thought she was still with Adam. Memories of the day she left started to flood her mind, and she hurriedly pushed them away, electing instead to focus on her teammates' happiness.

As the forms of Quake and Tempest came into view, a high, ringing cry split through the air. Tempest beat her wings rapidly, quickly overtaking her brother as she saw Ruby and Yang waiting for her. They were here! And they had grown so much! She roared with joy, almost tripping over herself as she landed, her claws scuffing the ground. She stumbled as she ran, not breaking her stride until she felt Ruby's arms around her neck. She faintly noticed that one of her claws had gotten chipped, but didn't care in the slightest.

"Rrroo!" she cried, sitting back on her haunches and lifting Ruby up into a hug, carefully wrapping her large forearms around the small human.

Tears streamed down Ruby's face as she hugged Tempest as tightly as she could. "Hi, Tempest! I missed you so, so, so much!" she sobbed.

Tempest nuzzled Ruby's head, purring without restraint, before gently placing her down and lifting Yang into her arms as well. "Ang!" she barked, drawing Taiyang's daughter close and rumbling happily.

Yang laughed as she hugged the wind dragon. "Good to see you too, girl."

As Tempest hugged Yang, Quake landed and Taiyang jumped off, easily sweeping his youngest daughter into his arms and kissing her cheek. "There are my girls!"

"Hi, Dad!" Ruby hugged her father while smiling at Quake over his shoulder. "Hi, Quake!"

Quake nodded his head. "Lo, Rrroo." Though he was also excited to see his partner's children, he knew that his feelings paled in comparison to poor Tempest. Even though he had done his best to keep her company, he knew that his sister had been lonely for the little ones, Ruby in particular. He could understand, of course. The child looked more and more like Summer the older she got.

Tempest placed Yang on the ground, allowing her to run over and hug her dad. "Hey, Dad! Hey, old man," she called over to Quake, who snorted loudly and tossed his head.

Taiyang chuckled as he kissed Yang. "Obviously, we didn't miss you _too_ much." He drew back to look at them. "Man, look at how much you've grown. You've got that Dragon Rider's look in your eyes, no doubt." He ruffled their hair, causing them to bat playfully at his hands. "I've been getting your letters, but I still want to hear all about how you're doing. And finally meet your dragons, of course. And your friends."

At that moment, he noticed Weiss and Blake standing nearby. "Well, speak of the devil! Get over here!"

The two walked over, Blake a little more hesitantly. Taiyang ruffling her hair in that moment would not exactly be a good thing. Her ears twitched under the ribbon.

Thankfully, the girls only received a handshake and a brief hug each, though their hands and ribs respectively were crushed in the process. "Nice to finally meet both of you!" Taiyang said. "The girls have said nothing but good things about you. I hope you'll let me meet your dragons too."

"Of course," Blake said with a shaky smile, still trying to get some feeling back in her wrist.

"Do you know when Uncle Qrow's gonna get here?" Ruby asked, her silver eyes shining with excitement.

"It'll be two or three days," Taiyang said. "He's had a long way to travel, but he's definitely coming home."

"EEEE! I can't wait!" Ruby started bouncing up and down again.

Taiyang chuckled, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Save some of that excitement for when he actually gets here, hon. Now, let's meet your dragons."

When they arrived at the stalls, Ruby immediately zipped over to Storm's. "Come on out, girl! We've got visitors!"

Storm perked up at the purely happy tone to her partner's voice, and eagerly trotted out. She tilted her head curiously when she saw a tall new human and two new dragons. Immediately, she noticed the way the older wind dragon was looking at Ruby and felt a low growl rising in her throat. Who was this dragon, and why was she putting off this aura of knowing Ruby so well?

"Hey!" Ruby said, putting her hands on her hips. "Don't be rude!"

Taiyang grinned at the dragonet. "Looks like she's a bit possessive." He walked over, holding out his hand to Storm. "Hey there, girl. I'm Ruby's dad."

Storm sniffed the man's hand, still keeping an eye on the new wind dragon. "Dad" was a new word, but it seemed that he was related to both Ruby and Yang, similar to how the two were related to each other. He had a nice voice.

Tempest took a step closer, peering curiously at the smaller wind dragon. So, this was Ruby's partner.

Storm puffed herself up, snorting loudly. Yes, she was Ruby's partner! No one had better forget that! 

Tempest chuffed softly at the young dragonet's display. Her own fins were down and her muzzle had an easy smile on it. She had no intention of stealing Ruby away. She wasn't Ruby's partner. She was bonded to Ruby's mother, Summer.

Storm blinked. What was mother? Was it like dad?

Tempest bobbed her head, explaining that a mother and father were what created each individual on the planet. They made and took care of their hatchlings until the hatchlings grew up. Since Summer was Ruby's mother, Ruby was her hatchling. That meant that Tempest also saw Ruby as her own hatchling.

Storm nodded slowly. Where was this Summer, then? When Tempest's fins drooped and she didn't answer, Storm realized her mistake and her initial hostility faded immediately. She padded over, gently rubbing her head against the older dragon's shoulder.

Tempest nuzzled the top of Storm's head, rumbling softly. It was okay. She had grown used to the pain by now.

Storm whimpered, hoping she'd never have to deal with what Tempest had faced. She didn't know what she would do if anything happened to Ruby.

Tempest responded with a low growl. She'd die before letting anything happen to Ruby. Her brothers, she knew, would also make that sacrifice if necessary. Her sister… She pushed the thought away immediately. Thinking about Phoenix hurt almost as much as thinking about Summer.

Quake waited patiently for the wind dragons to get acquainted before leaning in to touch his nose to Storm's in greeting. He could tell that she was strong, but very playful and kindhearted. All in all, she was a good match for Ruby.

Storm chirped happily up at him. This dragon was like Ragnar, but not quite as old.

Not quite as old?! Quake rolled his eyes. Why did everyone think he was so old?

Tempest snorted. Maybe it was because he acted like he had a branch up his tailhole most of the time. This earned her a sound whack across the back from her brother's tail.

"Easy, you two!" Taiyang laughed. "Don't set a bad example."

Since Storm was calm, Yang took the opportunity to take Fang out of his stall. "Easy, boy," she muttered as they drew close. She could sense her dragon's tension. "This is our family. Be cool."

Fang's tail lashed as he glared suspiciously at the new arrivals. The human looked a lot like Yang, so he wasn't too worried about him. The dragons, however, seemed just a little too friendly with his partner and his partner's sister.

Quake looked at the fire dragon and rolled his eyes. The attitude of this one definitely reminded him of a younger Phoenix.

Taiyang reached out to let Fang smell him, only to jump back as the dragonet snapped at his hand.

"Fang!" Yang scolded. "Uh, yeah. Sorry, Dad. He hates being touched on the head."

"Gotcha." Taiyang held out his hand, palm up. "Good boy. I'm not gonna hurt you."

Fang hesitated before quickly sniffing the human's hand. He smelled like Yang. Fang allowed his hackles to go down just a little bit. He acknowledged the older dragons, but made no move to approach them.

"I like the gold streaks on his side," Taiyang commented. "Makes him look like he'll be a fast flier someday."

Fang puffed out his chest at the praise.

Yang snickered. "Don't let your head get too big, buddy." She patted her dragon's shoulder fondly.

Taiyang looked at Blake and Weiss. "So, how about your dragons? Can I meet them?"

Weiss couldn't help but smile a little at his eagerness. She could certainly see where Ruby got her enthusiasm from. She approached Specter's stall and let him out. The ice dragon, of course, was all too happy to be out in the chill air. As she brought him over, she felt a slight flush of pride at the impressed look on Taiyang's face.

Taiyang let out a low whistle. "Well, now. This is certainly a beauty." He walked over, carefully inspecting Specter. "Never thought I'd get to see one up close." He looked at the ice dragon's face. "Hm. The frills are similar to water dragon fins, but different, more delicate. Fascinating." He peered at Specter's pitch-black eyes and shivered. "I see why you named him Specter. These are ghost-eyes if I ever saw them."

"So, Dad," Yang cut in. "Would you say it's very _ice_ to meet him?"

Weiss groaned. "Yang, don't start."

"Absolutely," Taiyang replied. "There's _snow_ doubt about it."

Blake's eyes widened. "Oh no…" _There's two of them!_

"Nope!" Ruby jumped up, covering her dad's mouth. "One more of those, and you'll have to wait a whole day to meet Pit! Right, Blake?"

"Absolutely!"

Taiyang pouted as Ruby withdrew her hand. "Aw, I had like a dozen more."

"I know," Ruby said flatly.

When Blake brought Pit out, Taiyang was silent. He examined the earth dragon closely for a moment, his brows furrowed. "Hm. Well, now. You're an interesting one."

Blake's heart stuttered nervously. "Interesting?"

"Yes," Taiyang murmured. "He's a bit bulkier than most earth dragons are at this age, and his brow is a bit wider. What have you been feeding him?"

"Well, he's been craving a lot of red meat," Blake said, hoping that would be enough to explain the minor differences in Pit's appearance.

"How much per serving?" When Blake told him, his brows shot up. "That's some killer metabolism." He gently patted Pit's head. "Seems as if you got yourself an exceptionally strong earth dragon. He might even be able to take on Ragnar one of these days."

Pit flicked his ears proudly, letting out a happy chirp. Encouraged by Taiyang's praise, he started to lift Specter off the ground with his powers. His freckles started to glow.

Blake's face paled and she tried to signal Pit to stop.

Yang noticed immediately, and quickly drew her dad's attention. "So, Dad. Think we can take Quake and Tempest for a flight?"

Taiyang smiled at her. "I don't see why not. Just get your chaps and goggles. In fact…" He turned back toward Blake and Weiss, just as a perplexed Pit was letting a frantically-flapping Specter fall back to the ground. "Ah! Trying to fly already, huh? They always get eager at this age. Anyway, how would you two like a taste of riding a fully-grown dragon? Do you have your gear yet?"

Blake, despite her previous worry, couldn't help but perk up at the thought of riding. "Yes! Are you sure it's okay?" She looked up at Quake, who was blinking calmly at her.

"Of course!" Taiyang insisted. "Ruby and Yang have been riding these two for years."

"I'd be honored to ride Tempest, if she wouldn't mind," Weiss said, smiling at the wind dragon.

Tempest bobbed her head, chirping happily. She would be pleased to let Ruby's friend ride her. She could tell that the ice dragon was well cared for, so this person was definitely worthy.

"Oh!" Ruby gasped. "I still need to introduce you guys properly! I can't believe I forgot." She pulled Weiss and Blake over to Tempest and Quake. "Tempest, Quake, these are my teammates. This is Weiss, and this is Blake."

Quake rumbled a greeting. "Lo."

"Ice," Tempest murmured. "Lake."

Weiss's breath caught as Tempest addressed her by name. There was always something about hearing a dragon speak that was just so strange and wonderful. Glacier had never called her by name. Actually, now that she thought about it, she couldn't remember Glacier ever speaking.

Blake, on the other hand, felt her ears drooping despite her best efforts. The last dragon to call her "Lake" had been poor Brand. He had been calling out to her when Adam had been "berating" her for a recent failure. The distressed fire dragon had been straining against his neck chain, shouting "Lake!" and "No, Ad! No!" until Adam yelled at him to shut up, sending him cowering to the back corner of his stall. Blake stole Pit's egg and fled a few days later.

"Well, you two had better get dressed!" Taiyang said, clapping his hands together. "They're all saddled and bridled, so this is the perfect time. Get going!"

Blake and Weiss eagerly obeyed, rushing back to the dorm to change into their chaps and get their goggles. Weiss noticed a slightly distant expression on her teammate's face, but decided against asking about it.

When they returned, they saw that the RWBY dragons were deep in conversation with Tempest and Quake. Pit was sitting back on his haunches, chirping and rumbling with the larger earth dragon while Storm bounced up and down in front of a purring Tempest. Fang watched the older dragons from a distance. Specter, meanwhile, was standing on his hind legs and had just started snapping at the air.

Weiss paused, realizing what her dragon was biting at as she saw the first few flecks of white falling from the sky. "It's snowing!" she gasped, her eyes lighting up. She looked up, a bright smile coming unbidden to her face as she felt the gentle touches of snow hit her skin.

Blake glanced at her friend, unable to keep from smiling as well when she saw the pure joy in her expression. She remembered her first time seeing snow when she had come to Vale on a trip with her parents. She had been only five years old. At the time, she had been terrified of the snowflakes, hiding under her dad's cloak, convinced that she'd freeze if they touched her. Weiss, on the other hand, obviously loved the snow. Blake wondered if it was a Schnee trait to love the cold.

Ruby, of course, immediately started trying to catch snowflakes on her tongue while Yang watched her with a fond smile.

The other dragonets were stunned. What was this stuff falling from the sky? It was like the frost that had coated the ground for the past few weeks, but much lighter and fluffier. Storm sneezed as some of it went into her nostrils.

Taiyang watched everyone for a moment, his heart warming at the moment of childlike innocence that seemed to blanket everything. "We'd better mount up," he said, reluctantly breaking the spell. "It's not a good idea to fly in the snow, so let's get a lap in while it's still light."

Blake walked over to Quake, nodding respectfully before adjusting and climbing into the saddle. She had ridden behind Adam on Brand before, so this wasn't an entirely new sensation. Quake's neck was thicker, and she could feel more muscles beneath her legs as she gripped the saddle and put on her goggles.

"Hello," Weiss greeted as she adjusted the stirrups of the saddle that was strapped at the base of Tempest's slender neck. She felt a thrill as she sat down and those large, powerful wings stretched out on either side of her.

Taiyang took a few steps back. "Okay, guys. One lap around the school. Fly!"

Quake and Tempest immediately turned toward the expanse of field to their right and started to run. Their long, powerful legs moved faster and faster as their claws tore at the ground. Tempest's fins fanned out while Quake flattened his ears against his head. Then, together, the two took off.

Weiss felt her stomach leap as the ground suddenly was gone from under her. Gripping the reins, she let out a breathless laugh. This was nothing like riding Glacier with her father! First of all, she had been literally tied to the saddle during those times. Second, making any noises or even moving had always caused a disapproving glare or a blow to the arm after they dismounted.

Here, she could actually feel the dragon's muscles beneath her and move her body along with her mount as she turned in the air, making a large circle around the academy.

Blake stared over the side of Quake's neck, marveling at the sight of Beacon and the grounds below her. She heard Weiss's laugh on the wind and felt her heart warming in response. Between the snow and this ride, she didn't think she had ever seen the heiress so purely happy. _She really should laugh more often,_ she found herself thinking.

Her focus returned to Quake as the earth dragon followed Tempest in a circle around Beacon. For a moment, she imagined that his scales were pine and silver-colored, and a sharp thrill went through her. _This will be me and Pit one day!_

The dragons circled the school before coming in for a landing. Blake and Weiss noticed other dragons approaching in the distance, probably more family members. For a moment, they both felt a very Ruby-esque surge of excitement at the thought of all the new dragons and adult Riders they'd be meeting over the next few days.

After they landed and thanked the dragons, Blake told the others about the incoming arrival of more dragons. Ruby, of course, started squealing.

"Omigosh, this is so exciting! Can we go see them?"

"Whoa, now," Taiyang said gently. "Let's get these two untacked and settled in. Then, I'd like to get caught up with my girls. The other dragons and Riders will be here throughout break. No need to rush."

Weiss nodded respectfully to Taiyang. "Thank you very much for letting us fly your dragons. We'll leave you to get caught up now, unless you need help with untacking."

"Thanks for the offer, but we can handle it." Taiyang smiled kindly at the both Weiss and Blake. "You feel free to visit Tempest and Quake any time, though. And I hope you'll be sitting with us at the Yule feast."

Weiss felt her cheeks warm a little at Taiyang's friendly attitude. Was this really what other people's fathers were like? "I'd be happy to. I'm sure Winter won't mind."

"Winter? She'll be…" Taiyang's smile changed to an odd expression, as if he was trying to suppress a laugh. "Oh…This will be interesting…"

"What? What will be interesting?" Weiss frowned. "Do you know my sister?"

"I don't, not really," Taiyang snickered. "But Qrow… Oh, this will be fun."

They couldn't get anything else out of him, so Weiss and Blake decided to head back to the dorms. Blake glanced at her teammate. "I'm a little concerned."

"I'll have to ask Winter how she knows Ruby's uncle," Weiss sighed. "I don't think she's dated anyone since she joined the Flight Squad, so he can't be an ex…"

"Maybe they just don't like each other?" Blake suggested.

"Perhaps, but I can't imagine why, especially if Qrow is anything like Taiyang," Weiss remarked. "He's very kind."

"Yeah…" Blake glanced to the side, another kind-hearted father at the front of her mind.

Weiss hesitated before touching her arm. "Are you…?"

"I'm fine," Blake said quickly. "Just…thinking."

Weiss didn't ask anything else, though her hand lingered an extra moment before she withdrew it again.

 **These Yule chapters are going to be so fun! I just love writing and reading about characters celebrating the holiday season. I've been reading Anne Rice's** _ **Wolves of Midwinter**_ **, and can't get enough of the descriptions of the holiday party being thrown in it. (If you like werewolves, you should really check out the series. The first book is called** _ **The Wolf Gift**_ **.) I also really enjoy rereading the** _ **Harry Potter**_ **books and getting to the Christmas chapters. Even though I'm not religious, the holiday season just makes me so happy! I know we're still in October, but I start thinking about the winter holidays in, like, June!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	47. The Arc Dragons

**Rawr, everybody! This chapter is coming at you in the wake of the Volume 5 trailer, which is admittedly leaving me more excited than apprehensive, which is a good sign! Not saying there isn't apprehension, but there's enough excitement to keep me going. I'm looking forward to learning more about Oscar and Raven's characters (because I may or may not have plans for them in this fic…) Also, Oscar is adorable, and I want to pat his head, give him cookies, and protect him from all the scary things. So, yeah! Hype train!**

 **(Though, what's with the floating islands. Did we jump into Atmos from** _ **Storm Hawks**_ **, all of a sudden? How does that work in this universe?!)**

 **Ahem, enjoy!**

It was early in the morning when a drowsy Jaune received a text from his eldest sister Mary. _"Hey, scrawny! We're here! Swing by the guest stalls once you get your lazy ass up."_

His heart leaping, he jumped out of bed and started rummaging in his dresser while calling out to the others. "Guys! Wake up! My family's here!"

Nora, of course, bounced from her bed almost instantly. "Ooh, yay! That means five new dragons, right?"

"That's right. Ren, Pyrrha, wake up!" Jaune was hopping around as he pulled his jeans on. It was strange just how much he had missed his family. Just a few months ago, he couldn't wait to get away from his mother's constant reminders to pack his socks, take his nausea meds, go to bed at a reasonable time…

Ren groaned as Nora started bouncing on his bed. "Give us a minute…"

Pyrrha yawned as she sat up. "Jaune, why don't you go ahead of us. You should have some time with your family before they meet us anyway. We'll follow. Just text where you are."

"Ah. Right." Jaune grinned sheepishly as he looked at Ren and Pyrrha's tired faces. "Take your time. I'll see you guys soon."

"I'll make sure they're up and moving, boss!" Nora said with a smart salute.

"I can always count on you, Nora!" Jaune laughed as he pulled on his hoodie and ran out the door.

He rushed to the arenas, which were now full of larger versions of the freshman stalls. As he stepped onto the turf-covered area in front of the first group of stalls, the ground started to shake. He turned just in time to see five huge, fully-grown dragons barreling toward him. He scrunched his eyes shut and braced himself for impact.

A hard snout knocked him flat on his back and a loud, booming voice roared in his ear. "AWN!" Hot air buffeted Jaune's face.

Finally opening his eyes, he looked up to see his father's fire dragon, Ignis, grinning down at him. A huge, muscular beast, Ignis had always been very affectionate with Johann's children. Truthfully, he could be a little too affectionate, which was why the two youngest children hadn't been formally introduced to him yet. Nothing would be worse than an accidental injury of that nature.

Ignis's brass-colored eyes blinked as Jaune sat up. The winter sun shone on his dark red, bronze-flecked scales, making them shimmer. Eagerly, he nuzzled his partner's only son. He had missed the boy so much!

"Hey, Iggy!" Jaune patted the fire dragon's snout, wincing a little as the large dragon playfully bit his other arm. No blood was drawn, but he was incredibly aware of the lethal power of those jaws as razor fangs pressed into his hoodie.

"Iggy!" A deep voice called out. "Back off and let the others have a chance!"

Ignis growled sullenly and stepped back, though not without shoving Jaune to the ground again.

Brazier, a fire dragon with patches of shining copper and milky white on her scales, bent her head to sniff at Jaune's hair. He smelled like dragons, many dragons. Young dragons. It was a good smell. Would she get to see the young dragons? She had always loved playing with the others when they were little.

Ore, a deep brown earth dragon with a dark gold underbelly, politely waited his turn before leaning in to gently lick Jaune's face. A low purr rumbled in his throat as the boy patted his neck. He had always liked this one, and he liked him more now that there was a strong earth dragon smell surrounding him.

Next came Blaze, a pale orange fire dragon with a single red stripe running down her back from the tip of her nose. She barked loudly at Jaune. "Awn. Safe?"

Jaune grinned as he hugged Blaze around the neck. "Yes, Blaze. I've been safe. I promise."

Blaze huffed with satisfaction. "Gud." She allowed him to hug her before stepping back to let Flurry have a turn.

Flurry, a mostly-green wind dragon with patches of blue and gold, was bouncing on her feet by this point, and didn't hesitate to tackle Jaune to the ground for the third time. "AWN! GUD!" She started licking his face like a giant puppy.

Jaune batted at the wind dragon's face, sputtering as the large tongue temporarily halted his ability to breathe. Thankfully, he heard footsteps before Flurry was pulled away.

"Easy, girl. Easy. We don't want to kill him so soon after exams." Autumn Arc patted her dragon's shoulder, rolling her eyes. "Hey, bro. How're you holding up?"

Jaune stood up, glad that he could finally hug his sisters. "Exams almost killed me, Weiss fainted due to a lack of sleep, and Scarlet was making Sage carry him around. So, not too bad."

Autumn laughed as she hugged him back. "Wow, I can't wait to finally meet these friends of yours. They sound like a riot!"

Jaune greeted June, Sapphire, and Mary (who punched him affectionately on the shoulder as a greeting) before turning to his father. "Hey, Dad."

Johann grinned, pulling his son into a tight hug. "You're looking good, Jaune. I can already see those Dragon Rider muscles forming!"

Jaune smiled proudly before looking around, noticing a certain absence. "Is Mom bringing Katie, Jenny, and Silvia on an airship?"

"Yeah," Johann sighed. "Silv still can't go near a dragon without getting scared. They'll be going straight to the guest building."

Jaune shook his head sadly. Johann had tried introducing Silvia to Ore, the gentlest of the Arc dragons, when she was two, but she had burst into tears at the sight of him. She was four now, and her opinion of the giant beasts hadn't changed in the slightest.

"I was actually hoping," Johann continued. "That we could introduce her to one of the dragonets when she gets here. Maybe seeing smaller dragons wouldn't be as scary for her."

"Well, if it's small you want, Twiggy's your girl," Jaune said confidently. "Actually, I'd vouch for any of the JNPR dragons, except maybe Ao Guang. He might be too hyper for a first meeting."

A shadow passed over Johann's face. "Yes, your runt… Can we take a look at her?"

Jaune felt his heart clench nervously. Whenever he talked to his dad about his dragon, there was always an edge of something in Johann's voice. Whether it was disappointment or worry, Jaune couldn't be totally sure.

They got to the stalls, and Jaune opened Twiggy's. He peered in to see the brown and green earth dragon curled up in the corner, glaring at the door. "What's wrong, girl?" he asked, stepping in.

Twiggy snorted, pointing her snout at the door while shivering pointedly. She didn't want to go outside today.

"Oh, is it too cold?" Jaune asked.

Twiggy bobbed her head, warbling quietly. Jaune always understood her.

Jaune knelt down and patted her back. "Would it be okay to come out for a few minutes? My sisters and dad are here, and they really want to meet you."

Twiggy perked up at this. Jaune had sisters, like how Twiggy and Freya were sisters? She wanted to meet them! She also felt a ripple of confusion at the unfamiliar word, "dad." What was dad? She knew about several things from listening to the older dragons, such as the concept of having mates when you're older and the idea of fighting monsters (which she really wasn't sure about). They had never spoken about "dad" before. Still, Jaune didn't seem scared, so this dad was probably not a bad thing. Slowly, Twiggy stood up and stretched.

"Good girl," Jaune muttered, scratching under her chin. "Don't worry. There are fire dragons outside. They can keep you warm if you need them to."

More dragons? Now, Twiggy definitely wanted to go outside! She trotted out after Jaune, stopping short when she saw the five huge dragons looking down at her. Her ears flattened and she crouched down so that she was closer to the ground. The dirt shifted a little as she reflexively started exercising her earth powers.

"It's okay," Jaune promised. "They're all family."

Johann stepped forward, holding out his hand for Twiggy to smell. "Hey, there," he said in a soft voice. "I'm Jaune's dad."

There was that word again. Twiggy sniffed curiously at the human. He smelled of dragons, like Jaune. She looked at his face, and let out a chirp of surprise. This man looked like Jaune! He was much older, but he looked and smelled so similar to Jaune! Feeling her fear fading, she stepped forward and stretched her neck out to lick his face.

Johann chuckled, patting the dragonet's snout. "Good girl." He examined her for a moment, his smile turning into a frown. "Hm. Definitely smaller than she should be." At this point, the other dragonets were likely the size of small elephants. Twiggy was barely the size of a horse.

"She's healthy, though!" Jaune interjected.

"True, but she could use a little buffing," Johann murmured, scratching his chin. "Feed her more red meat."

"I have been…"

"You should also see about exercising her more. Beacon has gyms, right?"

"I've been doing that too."

"Also-"

"Dad!" Mary cut in, rolling her eyes. "Chill. He knows what he's doing, just like we did."

"Ah, right." Johann rubbed at the back of his neck. "Sorry. It's a dad thing."

Twiggy, meanwhile, got up the courage to walk toward the sisters and the dragons. She looked up at the three towering fire dragons, and the earth and wind dragons. They were so big and strong! Would she be like that some day?

Ore rumbled gently. Twiggy would definitely continue growing. Even if she was smaller, she could be a fighter, especially if she learned how to run and fly fast.

Twiggy barked eagerly. She was fast! She was very fast!

Brazier chuffed softly as she leaned down to look at the dragonet. This one was adorable! She liked her already.

Ignis swatted at Twiggy gently with a large paw, knocking her to the side. He crouched down, his tail lashing back and forth with excitement.

Twiggy yelped, quickly hiding behind Jaune.

"Hey, don't worry," Jaune assured her. "Iggy was just playing. He won't hurt you."

Blaze rolled her eyes, smacking the older dragon with her tail. Why couldn't he remember that he needed to be gentle with the small ones?

Ignis ducked his head, growling sullenly.

"Take it easy, buddy," Johann soothed. "You can play with her when she's bigger." Again, he was doubtful as he peered at his son's undersized dragon. He held out his hand again, prompting Twiggy to peek her head out and lick his palm. _She's certainly a gentle one,_ he thought. _If nothing else, she may be able to help Silvia._ He didn't want to think about the other likely possibilities concerning the future. He knew what this dragon's fate would be if Jaune couldn't make her stronger.

Flurry hopped excitedly from one paw to the other. Could she play with the little one? She promised not to shove her or hit her with her tail by mistake!

Autumn laughed at her dragon's eagerness. "Jeez, Flurry. It's like you've never seen a dragonet before."

Jaune's Scroll buzzed and he quickly took it out. It was a text from Pyrrha asking where he was. He quickly told her they were by the stalls before pocketing his Scroll. "My teammates are on their way down."

Johann grinned, pushing aside his worries about Twiggy for the moment. "Good! I've been looking forward to finally meeting them."

Sapphire smirked. "Yeah, especially that _girl_ you've talked so much about."

Jaune's cheeks heated up despite the cold. "It's not like that. Pyrrha's just a friend."

Twiggy snorted loudly and whacked Jaune's back with her tail. She knew by this point that that wasn't true! She shook her head and gave her partner a pitying eyeroll.

Everyone burst out laughing while Jaune's face turned a shade of red that rivaled Ignis's scales. They were still trying to recover when the rest of Team JNPR arrived.

The three stopped short. "What's so funny?" Ren asked uncertainly.

"Twiggy was just acting up!" Jaune cut in before his sisters could even think of saying anything. "Isn't that right, Twiggy?"

Twiggy tilted her head. Acting up? Her? Never! She huffed at the very idea.

Johann stepped forward, deciding to spare his son of any embarrassment the girls might cause. _He needs to figure out all those emotions on his own, whatever they may be._ "Pleasure to meet you," he said to Jaune's teammates. "I'm Johann Arc, and that's Ignis over there." He nodded at his dragon, who barked an excited greeting.

"Hello." Pyrrha gladly shook Johann's hand. "I'm Pyrrha Nikos, Rider of Titan."

Ren bowed respectfully. "Lie Ren, Rider of Ao Guang."

Nora zipped forward to shake Johann's hand. "Nora Valkyrie! My dragon's name is Freya. Do you wanna meet her?" She tried not to sound too eager, though wasn't very successful. She couldn't help it. Jaune had already said that she and Ren would be welcome among the Arcs, and this was the closest she'd ever get to showing off her dragon to a parental figure.

Johann's expression softened further at Nora's eagerness. He could see the glimmer in her eyes, and remembered what Jaune had said about her and Ren being orphans. "I'd be happy to. She's the wind dragon of your team, yes?"

"Yep!" Nora chirped. "I'll go get her!"

"Say hello to Jaune's sisters first," Ren gently reminded her.

"Oh, right! Hi!" Nora waved cheerfully to the four women as she walked by.

June giggled as Nora hurried to her dragon's stall. "Do you think we were that adorable as freshmen?" she whispered.

"I know I was!" Sapphire declared.

Johann turned back to Ren and Pyrrha. "I'd certainly like to meet your dragons as well."

The two needed no further prompting, and rushed to their stalls to let their dragons out.

Freya was yawning as Nora led her over. She glanced at Jaune, then blinked a few times as a man knelt down to examine her. Two Jaunes? That couldn't be right.

Flurry, unable to contain herself, eagerly trotted over to the younger wind dragon, chirping a greeting.

Freya warbled politely, flicking her fins in acknowledgement. There were certainly a lot of new adult dragons today. Were they going to be new teachers?

Twiggy quickly explained that this was Jaune's family and their dragons.

Freya perked up a little at this. Did Nora and Ren have families with dragons too?

"She's certainly mellow," Johann noted. "That's strange. Wind dragons are usually very flighty."

"I think the flighty trait ended up with Ao Guang," Nora giggled. "He's such a silly boy!"

As if on cue, the water dragon bounded out of his stall, making a beeline for the new dragons, barking with joy. New dragons to play with!

Ignis immediately crouched down, growling playfully and batting at the water dragon. Guang, instead of getting scared, jumped right back up again and tried to headbutt one of the fire dragon's large legs.

Brazier bent down to nuzzle the dragonet's shoulder, chuffing as he put his webbed paws on her face.

"Guang, behave!" Ren scolded.

"Oh, it's fine," Mary said, waving her hand dismissively. "Brazier loves dragonets."

When Titan was brought over, Johann carefully held out his hand, which the dragonet politely sniffed. "Hm. You weren't kidding about how calm he is," he muttered to Jaune.

Titan blinked up at the human that looked so much like Jaune. Twiggy had just told him something about Jaune's sisters and a "dad." He wasn't sure what that meant, but he was certainly intrigued with the three new fire dragons. He approached the pale orange one with the stripe and introduced himself.

Blaze bobbed her head, bending down to sniff the new arrival. Her brows furrowed, but she didn't say anything about what she smelled. Instead, she asked him if he was enjoying Beacon.

He was enjoying himself. He liked his partner, his siblings, and their partners. The only thing they really had to deal with was a group of bullies, and that group had mostly mellowed out during the past few weeks. Only their leader was a threat anymore.

Blaze growled sharply. Were the dragons of these bullies okay?

Titan sighed. Three of them were…

Eventually, the adult dragons started to shown signs of fatigue from their journey, so Johann excused himself and his daughters to take them back to the guest stalls.

"Want any help, Dad?" Jaune asked.

"No thanks, son. Tend to your own dragons. We'll have plenty of time to get caught up these next few weeks." Johann patted his shoulder. "I'm looking forward to dinner! The food at Beacon is second to none, especially during the holidays. I hope you kids like whole smoked turkeys! They serve those on Yule day!"

Nora felt herself salivating at the thought. "Smoked turkey?"

"Oh yeah. Smoked turkey, mashed potatoes with butter and gravy, grilled corn on the cob, brussel sprouts fried in bacon grease…"

"Dad, shut up!" Mary groaned. "You'll make us hungry."

"But I didn't even get to the desserts," Johann protested, his eyes sparkling playfully.

Nora covered her ears, groaning at how far away Yule still was. "Please don't! I might die!"

Johann laughed. "Okay, okay. It's better if it's a surprise anyway. I'll see you kids later. Jaune, don't forget your mother gets here this evening."

"I won't forget!" Jaune promised. "I'll keep my Scroll on me."

After Jaune's family left, the temperature of the area became immensely colder. Pyrrha shivered. "The fire dragons must have been heating their scales," she noted. "They all seem very nice."

"They are!" Jaune said empathetically. "And you'd better expect to sit with them for dinner every night while they're here. Also, quick warning: My little sisters will not leave us alone once they're here."

Nora smiled as she urged a yawning Freya back into her stall. Johann's welcoming face and the easy acceptance of Jaune's older sisters were already making her more excited about the holidays than she'd ever been. "I think we can handle that. Right, Ren?"

"I've been through worse." Ren gave his best friend a pointed look. 

"Hey!" Nora crouched down, realized that there wasn't enough snow on the ground to make snowballs, and stood up again with a pout. "Watch your back when the snow gets thicker, young man!"

Ren smirked. "I'll keep that in mind."

…..

It was early evening as the Arc dragons settled in their stalls. It was nice being close together. It wasn't quite as nice as being with their respective sibling groups, but they had accepted a long time ago that they wouldn't be seeing their brothers and sisters as often now that they weren't at the dragonries anymore.

Blaze was pacing in a circle, growling softly to herself. When Brazier expressed concern, she asked if the others had noticed anything strange about Titan.

Ore rumbled, shaking his head. He hadn't gotten close to the fire dragonet.

Ignis chirped nervously. Was something wrong?

Blaze wasn't sure. When she had smelled Titan, there had been something off about him. While he seemed to be every bit as intelligent as an elemental, he didn't smell like a fire dragon. Instead, his smell evoked memories of when she had helped to guard a shipment of brood dragons. There was no trace of smoke, no extra heat. No fire.

The other dragons shifted nervously. A fire dragon with no fire? What did that mean?

Blaze shook her head. Whatever it meant, it certainly couldn't be anything good. They'd have to keep their eyes open while they were here.

The others agreed. With that decided, they were finally able to find sleep.

 **Yay for more dragons! I love sprinkling bits of Arkos and Team Sloth into these chapters. Because my stories always end with them being canon. Always. No Valentine's Day rehashes here!**

 **Speaking of canon JNPR, I just wanted to bring up something that's bugging me: Ruby has been with JNR for around ten months, considering Volume 4 and the timeskip. And it's looking like we won't be getting a full RWBY reunion for a good while yet. Ten months is already much longer than Ruby's overall time at Beacon with her team. I can't help but feel that the bonds between Team RNJR are going to end up being far stronger than the bonds between Team RWBY ever were, or ever will be at this point. I'm not sure if I'm cool with that, considering the fact that** _ **RWBY**_ **is literally the show's title. This just adds to my belief that there should have been more time, both episode-wise and in-universe, before the events at Volume 3's end.**

 **Ah well. Fingers crossed for an awesome beginning of the season!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Praise Monty, and peace out!**


	48. Dracophobia

**Rawr, everyone! Happy Dragon Tuesday! Also, happy Volume 5 premiere for all non-FIRST members. I ended up throwing in the money to be FIRST, because there's no way I'm waiting until after work in the evening on TUESDAY to watch new episodes. Waiting until evening on Saturday is bad enough…**

 **Without spoilers, I think it's promising. There are some things that concern me, but overall, I'm excited. I'll probably talk more in the update to "Shattered Moon," when I'm sure everyone's seen it.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

That same evening, the rest of Jaune's family arrived. As soon as the airship doors opened, a yellow-haired six year old girl came barreling out, running full-speed into Jaune's arms. She laughed as she was easily lifted up and twirled around. "Jaune's here! Jaune's here!" she shouted.

Jaune let out a wheezing breath as he put her down. "You're gonna be too big for that soon, Jenny." He looked toward the ship. "Are Mommy and Katie okay?"

Jenny stuck out her tongue. "No. They're wimps."

"Hey!" Jaune ruffled her short, yellow hair. "I get airsickness too. Does that make me a wimp?"

"Yep!"

"You're a jerk."

"You're a bigger jerk!"

"Runt."

"Dork."

Pyrrha smiled at the banter, which she gathered was a relatively normal thing for Jaune's family. _It must be nice having so many siblings,_ she mused. _You'd never be lonely._

At that moment, a sandy-haired woman emerged from the ship, gripping the hand of a very pale twelve year old. A toddler of about four years walked on her other side. Out of the three, the toddler was the only one who didn't look close to throwing up.

"You okay?" Jaune called over, waiting patiently for his mom and other sisters to approach.

Joan Arc forced a smile. "Oh, I'm okay, sweetie. Give it a few minutes, and I'll be just fine." The twelve year old girl just groaned.

The toddler's face lit up when she saw Jaune. A huge smile illuminated everything, from her bright blue eyes to her rosy cheeks. "Big brother!" she squeaked, trying to run over to him, but quickly tripping and falling on her face.

Jaune closed the distance between them and easily scooped her up. "Hey, Silvia!" He kissed her red cheek and ruffled her hair. "You got an owie?"

Silvia giggled. "No owie. I'm really, really tough. See?" She scrunched her face up in what she surely thought was a tough expression.

"You sure are, kiddo," Jaune said, nodding gravely. "It takes a very strong Arc to not get sick on airships."

Jenny pouted, tugging on Jaune's coat. "Hey, I didn't get sick either!" She looked over at Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora. "Are those your teammates?"

"Sure are." Jaune glanced at his mother and Katie as they made their way over. "Everyone, this is Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora. Guys, this is my mom, Katie, Jenny, and Silvia."

Jenny and Silvia both stared wide-eyed at their brother's teammates. Katie looked at them, saw Ren, and quickly hid behind her mother's back, her cheeks flushing.

Joan smiled gently. "It's a pleasure to meet you all. I'm sorry you have to see me like this."

"Not at all!" Pyrrha assured her. "We already knew about Jaune's airsickness. It's a common thing for many people." She noticed the suitcases being unloaded. "Would you like help with your luggage, Mrs. Arc?"

Joan's smile widened. "Thank you, that would be very helpful. But none of that 'Mrs. Arc,' sweetie. It makes me feel old. Just call me Joan."

The rest of Team JNPR hurried to get the bags while Jaune continued to carry Silvia, who staunchly refused to be put down. They walked toward the guest rooms just as a dragon swooped low overhead. Silvia yelped and hid her face against Jaune's shoulder. Jaune gently rubbed her back until the dragon was out of sight.

When Silvia chanced to look up again, tears were spilling down her cheeks. "That was big…"

Jaune wiped her face with his sleeve. "You know, Silv, I have a dragon now."

Silvia sniffled. "Is it scary?"

"No," he assured her. "Twiggy's the friendliest dragon in the world."

"Dragons are big and have big teeth," Silvia insisted. "I'm small. They'll eat me up!" She smacked her hands together and made a chomping noise. "Like that!"

"Aw, dragons won't eat you up, kiddo," Jaune promised her. "They haven't eaten me. They haven't eaten Daddy, Mary, Sapphire, June, or Autumn."

"They're all bigger," Silvia said stubbornly. "I'm small."

"You know," Pyrrha cut in, falling into step with Jaune as she carried two of Joan's large duffel bags. "Our friend Ruby met a fully-grown dragon when she was even younger than you, and they became best friends. She wasn't eaten at all."

Silvia gave Pyrrha a skeptical look. "Really?"

"Yes. And I'm willing to bet she was smaller than you."

Silvia pondered this for a moment, but was quickly distracted when she realized something else. "Hey! You're the pretty cereal girl!" She looked at Jaune. "Big brother, is she your girlfriend?"

Jaune and Pyrrha's faces turned bright red while Nora burst out laughing and Jenny let out a loud "OOOOOOOH!" Joan, mercifully, came to her son's rescue.

"Sweetie, why don't you let me take Silvia? It looks like Ren's having trouble with that trunk."

He wasn't, but Jaune hurried to help him just the same.

When they got up to where the two rooms Johann had reserved were, they heard talking and laughing coming from nearby. "And then, Iggy fell right into the pool! It took ages to wash all the chlorine from his scales!"

An answering laugh sounded. "Man, I'm not sure what we would've done if Phoenix had been like that."

"Johann?" Joan called.

A moment later, Johann strode out of the room, followed by a man with tanned skin and lighter blond hair. "Hey, honey! Get this: We're rooming right next to Taiyang here! He's Ruby and Yang's dad."

Ruby and Yang ran out of the room. "Hey, Jaune!" Yang said. "Your dad and sisters are totally cool!"

"Yeah, we are," Jenny said, smirking proudly.

Silvia let out a gasp, suddenly wriggling in Joan's arms. "Doggy! Mommy, look! It's a doggy!"

Jaune followed Silvia's gaze. Sure enough, a black and white corgi had padded out of the room and was watching the Arcs curiously. He yipped excitedly at Silvia's enthusiasm.

"Hold it, Jenny!" Joan said, trying to get control over a struggling Silvia as Jenny moved forward with an outstretched arm. "Ask Mister Xiao Long first if you can pet his dog."

Taiyang grinned. "No problem. His name's Zwei, and he's used to dealing with troubled dragons. A few kids won't even faze him."

Silvia gasped. "Doesn't the doggy get eaten up?"

"Of course not!" Taiyang chuckled. "He's friends with my dragons."

"See, Silv?" Jaune smiled. "Zwei's even smaller than you, and dragons don't eat him. What do you say to meeting Twiggy later on? I promise you'll be safe."

Silvia thought for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. Can I pet the doggy?"

Jenny was already kneeling on the floor, giggling as Zwei licked her face. Silvia eagerly joined her, patting the corgi's back and squeaking as he spun around, barking happily.

Katie walked over slowly, holding out her hand for Zwei to sniff. She smiled for the first time as a warm tongue licked her palm.

Jaune grinned. "Looks like you're feeling better, Katie. Want to say hi to my friends?"

Katie blushed, glanced around, and waved once before quickly walking into the room her mother was entering.

Johann smiled fondly after his daughter. "She prefers dragons over people," he explained.

"Hey, me too!" Ruby commented. "I think we'll definitely get along."

Nora came back out of the room after putting her share of the luggage into a corner. She jumped up and down, unable to stop herself as she looked at the families surrounding her. "This is gonna be the best Yule ever! Calling it right now!"

…

That evening after dinner, Jaune, Joan, and Silvia stood outside Twiggy's stall. Jaune entered first, smiling as his dragon bounded up to him and started nuzzling his shoulder. "Hey, girl," he murmured. "I need you to do me a favor, okay?"

Twiggy tilted her head and chirped. A favor? What did Jaune need her help with? She'd do whatever it was, of course.

"My little sister's outside," Jaune explained. "She's scared of dragons, but we're trying to make her not scared anymore. Since you're the smallest dragon here, she might not be scared of you."

Twiggy warbled in confusion. Scared of dragons? Why would anyone be scared of dragons? Then again, Mudslide, Barracuda, and Tornado were pretty scary. She hoped they weren't outside…

"I'm bringing you out. You need to be very quiet and gentle, okay?" Jaune continued. "No bouncing around, and no licking."

Jaune had never asked her not to bounce around or lick before. This was so strange. Still, wanting to please her partner, Twiggy bobbed her head.

"Good girl." Jaune opened the stall door. "We won't be long. I know it's getting cold."

Twiggy agreed with that, shivering as she stepped onto the ground, which now had a thin layer of whiteness that only made her colder. She danced from paw to paw, blowing the white stuff off.

Silvia yelped, hiding behind Joan's leg, her eyes on Twiggy's paws.

"Easy, Twiggy." Jaune put a hand on her neck. "Hold still. Settle."

Twiggy did, though she couldn't help but fidget just a little. She noticed the tiny thing hiding behind the other human. Both of them looked and smelled like Jaune. She took a step forward, sniffing, trying to get a better look at the tiny one. She had never seen a human so small before!

Silvia hugged her mom's leg, trembling as she watched the dragon's nostrils flaring. "S-S-Scary…"

The tiny human was shaking. She was probably cold, just like Twiggy was. She was so small, after all. Twiggy moved around the taller human, unfolding a wing and reaching for the tiny one. She could keep her warm, just like Titan always did for Twiggy with his wing.

Seeing the large wing stretching toward her, Silvia let out a terrified wail, hiding her face against Joan's leg. "Get it away!"

Twiggy jumped back, letting out a startled bark at the human's cry. What was wrong? Was the small one hurt?

Hearing the dragon's loud bark was the last straw for Silvia, who turned and bolted.

Twiggy tried to follow, only to be stopped by Jaune. They watched as the taller human scooped up the little one, whispering soothingly to her. Twiggy whimpered, her heart sinking when she saw the sad look on her partner's face. She had done something wrong. Jaune was disappointed in her. Her wings drooped and she bowed her head.

Jaune quickly turned his attention from Silvia to his dragon. "Easy, girl," he soothed. "It's not your fault. You tried. Don't be sad." When Twiggy didn't lift her head, he knelt down to kiss her snout. "Come on. Who's my best girl?"

Twiggy sniffed. Not her. She wasn't the best. She had scared the tiny one. She was definitely the worst.

Jaune tried in vain to cheer his dragon up for a few more minutes before dejectedly returning her to her stall. He put an extra apple in her food dish, hoping that would be enough to tell her that he wasn't angry or disappointed. "It's okay, Twiggy," he said again. "Sleep well. I love you." He scratched her on the neck a few inches down from her ears, where he knew she loved being scratched the most.

Twiggy chirped once in reply before flopping down on her bed of hay. She waited for Jaune's footsteps to fade before allowing herself to cry. Big, fat tears ran down her scaly cheeks and puddled in the hay. Her tail curled around her paws as she tried to make herself as small as possible. At least that wasn't too difficult for her.

As was always the case when Twiggy was sad, Titan's gentle rumble from the next stall was quick to comfort her. The larger fire dragon's quiet words were soothing to Twiggy, as they always were, but she didn't think she'd be falling asleep any time soon. Still, she warbled gratefully to her brother and closed her eyes.

…..

When Jaune returned to the dorm room, his shoulders slumped, Pyrrha immediately walked over. "Did it not go well?" she asked, touching his arm.

Jaune shook his head. "She was scared, and now Twiggy's depressed because she thinks she did something wrong."

"Aw, what happened?" Nora asked, sitting up, ready to run over and give her leader a hug if necessary.

Jaune quickly told them about the encounter. "I know Twiggy was trying to be comforting, but Silvia was just so scared."

"Do you have any idea why she's scared?" Ren asked. "Did she see something on TV when she was younger?"

"No. She's just really afraid of dragons." Jaune shrugged. "She's the same way with horses and big dogs, but we can keep her away from those without a problem. But what can we do about dragons? We're a family of Dragon Riders, for crying out loud! If she's terrified of our partners, what are we going to do? We'll have to either arrange for her and Mom to live separately from our house, or send her off to boarding school once she's old enough. Mom doesn't want to be away from the dragons, and none of us want to be distant from Silv, but what else can we do if we can't get her over this?!" He realized he was close to tears, and took a few deep breaths to steady himself.

Pyrrha stepped forward, gently hugging him. "Don't worry," she murmured. "Most childhood fears can be overcome, especially through regular interaction with the thing they're scared of. She was scared of Twiggy this time, but maybe things will be better next time."

Jaune sighed, resting his head on her shoulder. "I don't know if there will be a next time. She'll probably refuse to go near any dragons after tonight. And poor Twiggy… She just looked so sad. I kept telling her it was okay, but…"

"So, you'll check on her first thing in the morning and tell her again," Pyrrha said firmly. "Everything will be fine, Jaune. We just need to handle one problem at a time. Let your mother and father figure out what to do about Silvia. She's their responsibility. Twiggy is yours, and you're doing a grand job."

Jaune took a few more deep breaths, drawing comfort from Pyrrha's strong arms and confident voice. "Okay," he murmured. "Thanks, Pyrrha."

"You're welcome." Pyrrha squeezed him once before stepping back. "Now, let's go to sleep. We have a whole break ahead of us."

Jaune nodded, a slight smile returning to his face. "We sure do." He just hoped that his little sister and his little dragon would be okay by the end of it.

"You know," Nora commented as everyone started getting ready for bed. "I was scared of snakes when I was a kid."

"Yeah?" Jaune looked over at her. "Did you get over it?"

"Uh…" Nora noticed Ren giving her a sharp glare. "Yeah! Totally! I love snakes now! They're so…uh…slithery…"

Jaune cast a despairing look to the ceiling while Ren and Pyrrha let out simultaneous groans. "Great…" he muttered. "Just great…"

 **A nice mix of cuteness and angst. For those who don't know, Jaune's sisters in this and other stories are based on the personalities and names I came up with when writing "Merry Dustmas," one of my favorite commission pieces (I call it the Arkos Behemoth). When I thought about Jaune's youngest sister, I realized it would be interesting if she was afraid of dragons. I've known kids over the years who were scared of varying things at the age of four, after all. One of the kids in my neighborhood used to be terrified of my old beagle. There will be more adorableness in the future, along with Jaune being the best big brother/dragon dad in the world. I seriously love writing him in these situations!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Praise Monty and peace out!**


	49. A Boost in Confidence

**Rawr, everyone! Another Dragon Tuesday is here, and I'm still kicking! I'm also munching on some Pumpkin Pete's (my FYE FINALLY got some in). It's kinda like Lucky Charms, but with a much lower marshmallow to cereal ratio, which I find completely unacceptable. However, it has Pyrrha's beautiful face on the front of the box, so I can forgive basically anything.**

 **Anyhoo, enjoy!**

The following morning before breakfast, Jaune and the rest of Team JNPR left the dorm to check on their dragons, Twiggy in particular. When they got out to the courtyard, they stopped short at the sight of two familiar young girls.

"Hey, Jaune!" Jenny said, straightening up. "Are you going to see your dragons? Can we come too? I promise we won't wimp out like Silvia."

Katie gave Jenny a stern look. "Don't be mean," she muttered.

Jaune folded his arms. "Do Mom and Dad know you're out here?"

"Uh, no. They're sleeping like rocks." Jenny rolled her eyes. "It's not like traveling should make you that tired! They must just be old."

"I left a note," Katie said quickly.

Jaune sighed. "Well, I guess it's okay, then. Just wait until we bring them over."

Jenny nodded as gravely as a six year old was capable of doing. "I will! I promise!"

When Jaune opened Twiggy's stall, the earth dragon tried hiding her head in the hay. "Hey, Twiggy. Don't be like that." He walked over, kneeling next to her. "I'm sorry I put you on the spot yesterday. I didn't think Silvia would get that scared. It's not your fault. She's always been scared of dragons, and we're still trying to figure out how to get her over it."

Twiggy whimpered, putting a paw over her eyes.

"I got two more sisters outside," Jaune continued. "Katie and Jenny, and they really want to meet you. They won't be scared at all. I promise."

Twiggy shook her head. No more small humans! She didn't want to scare anyone else!

Jaune tried for a few more minutes before breathing a defeated sigh. "Okay, girl. They'll be meeting the others, so I'll leave the door cracked in case you want to come out."

By the time he stepped out of the stall, Titan, Freya, and Ao Guang were already lined up. Guang was bouncing up and down, grumbling when Ren kept him from running straight over to the young humans. He wanted to play! And the smallest one looked just as bouncy as he was!

Titan was gaping openly. Twiggy had described the small human to him, of course, but… Did they really get this tiny?! He stared at the littlest one, who was shorter than one of his legs. He just wanted to cover her with his wing and keep her safe from everything! Wait, where was Twiggy? He looked sharply toward her stall, heard a whine from inside, and sighed sadly.

Freya was yawning pointedly at Nora. How many more humans would she have to meet?

When Pyrrha gave him a questioning look, Jaune shook his head. "Twiggy's still depressed about Silvia."

Jenny pouted. "Aw. I wanted to see her!"

"Here," Pyrrha said. "Why don't you meet Titan first?" She led the large fire dragon over, smiling at the eager look in his blue eyes.

Titan stretched his neck forward, warbling a greeting. His tail thumped against the ground when a tiny hand touched his snout.

Jenny smiled. "You're pretty!"

Katie walked to one side, running a hand down Titan's neck and looking at his wings and spines. "He's not hot," she noticed. "Ignis, Brazier, and Blaze are always hot during cold weather."

"Titan's a bit of a late bloomer," Pyrrha admitted. "He hasn't learned how to heat his scales yet."

"I like his scales!" Jenny said, still staring at Titan's face.

When Pyrrha had Titan back off to let the others have a turn, she noticed with some amusement that he was really reluctant to move away. He grumbled a little, though ultimately obeyed. _So, he has a thing for kids. I should've probably predicted that, considering how good he was with Twiggy when she was little._

Ao Guang was next, mostly because he was moments away from shoving Ren to the ground. He kept bouncing up and down, though he resisted the urge to pounce, sensing that doing so would probably be a bad idea.

Jenny ran over, giggling as she patted his head. "You're silly! Ooh, pretty eyes!" she remarked, looking at the water dragon's one gray and one teal eye.

Ao Guang tossed his head, fins flaring out proudly.

Katie was smiling up at him. "Are all water dragons like that?"

"Nope," Ren said with a sigh. "I was just lucky, I suppose."

"Oh, you know you were," Nora said, elbowing him. "You love him, even though he drives you crazy."

"Well, he wouldn't be the first," Ren said, ruffling her hair.

Nora stuck her tongue out playfully out at him. As he turned away, though, his words sank in and her face turned bright red. _Wait…what?!_

Freya, deciding to get this over with, padded over to the taller of the small humans and politely sniffed her. She was glad when this human pet her head gently. After a minute, she yawned again, giving her partner a pointed look.

"Okay, okay," Nora said, rolling her eyes. "Back to your stall, lazy girl." She led her dragon back to the stall, where Freya promptly returned to her bed and plopped down. "Jeez. You know dragons don't actually hibernate in the winter, right?"

Freya covered her head with her wing and groaned.

Katie glanced at her sister and Ao Guang before slowly approaching Twiggy's stall. "Hello?" she called in quietly. "Twiggy?"

Inside the stall, Twiggy looked up, tilting her head at the unfamiliar voice.

"I'm Katie, Jaune's sister. Do you wanna come out?"

Twiggy blinked, slowly sitting up. The little human was…asking her to come out? She let out a cautious warble.

"You can come out if you want," Katie whispered. "I'm not scared."

Twiggy hesitated, then walked slowly toward the cracked door, nudging it open. She looked down at this new human. She was bigger than the tiny human, but smaller than Jaune. Her blue eyes were just like his. Cautiously, Twiggy bent down to sniff her hair.

Katie smiled, stroking the dragonet's neck. "Good girl!"

Jenny looked over and let out a squeak. "Omigosh, is that Twiggy? Is it?"

Ao Guang jumped at the sudden squeak, then crouched down playfully, snapping lightly at Jenny's arm.

"Guang, no!" Ren quickly scolded. "She's too small to play like that!"

Ao Guang snorted, but didn't try snapping again.

Jenny didn't even notice. She was already running over to Twiggy. "Hi, Twiggy! Don't worry. I'm not a scaredy-cat!" She held out her hand for the dragon to sniff, giggling when the broad, scaled snout touched her palm. "Wow, you really are smaller than the others. Don't worry, I know what that's like."

Twiggy's ears flicked and she felt herself starting to purr. She liked these little humans, and they seemed to actually like her! She looked at Jaune, her heart lifting when she saw the proud smile on his face.

Jaune felt relief flooding his system as his dragon started to perk up. "Thank goodness," he muttered.

Pyrrha touched his arm. "See? She'll be just fine."

"Yeah," Jaune replied. "I just worry about her, you know? It's kinda been a constant thing since she hatched." He closed his eyes, thinking back to the trembling, helpless, lizard-sized creature that had almost died in his arms only a few months ago.

"I know," Pyrrha said, smiling softly. "She's really lucky to have you."

Jaune glanced at her, smiling back. His face flushed a little at the warmth in his friend's gaze. He suddenly wanted to say something, but had no idea what.

Ao Guang watched the two with narrowed eyes. Squawking, he called over to Titan. Now was the perfect opportunity to push them together!

Titan blinked, tearing his gaze away from Twiggy and the small humans. Looking at his partner, he snorted, padding over and lightly butting his head against her side, pushing her against Jaune. He warbled, putting his head down in front of the two.

Pyrrha started to blush at the sudden closeness to Jaune, but couldn't help but laugh at her dragon. "Starving for attention, are you?" she murmured, running a hand down his snout and scratching his neck.

Jaune snickered. "They've been pretty needy lately. Must be because of the cold. They don't get out to play as much."

Nora zipped over. "We should totally have a huge snowball fight once there's enough snow on the ground! Dragons and people! Neptune was talking about it the other day, and it sounds way fun!"

"I'm in!" Jaune said immediately.

Jaune's arm was right up against Pyrrha's. He could feel the backs of their hands touching. Maybe it was elation due to Twiggy's lifted mood. Maybe it was an overall sense of easygoing happiness. Either way, Jaune found himself lightly wrapping his fingers around hers while reaching out with his free hand to stroke Titan's snout.

Pyrrha felt a thrill go up her arm and through her chest at the touch of Jaune's hand. Shyly, she returned the grip, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. She saw him smiling at her and felt her blush deepening. As Jenny and Katie returned with Twiggy, she felt him squeeze her hand gently before discreetly letting go. Remembering Jenny's loud eagerness to tease him before, Pyrrha understood completely.

Titan glanced between the two, then turned to Twiggy with a quick wink.

Twiggy winked back, her tail thudding happily against the ground as Katie continued to scratch her neck. Today was definitely looking up.

"Hey, Jaune?" Jenny piped up. "Why'd you name her Twiggy?"

"Well, when she first hatched, she was really tiny. Her legs and tail were super thin, like twigs. It just seemed to fit."

Jenny wrinkled her nose. "Seems like a wimpy name for a dragon."

"Maybe, but if people underestimate her, that'll be their mistake," Jaune said, grinning proudly at his dragon. "She's the smartest dragon in our year, and she'll be one of the best fighters in all of Remnant. I'm sure of it."

Twiggy's chest puffed out at her partner's praise, even as her heart squirmed uncomfortably. She hoped she'd be able to live up to Jaune's expectations. She still wasn't sure how she felt about fighting.

Jaune felt his Scroll buzz and took it out of his pocket. "That's Mom. Looks like it's time for some breakfast. You two go ahead while we feed our dragons."

"But we wanna help!" Jenny protested. "Pleeeeeaaaaaase?"

"Oh, okay," Jaune sighed. "The dragon food is kept in a storage shed over here, along with the meat and apples. Now, their diet at this age generally consists of…"

…

Blake and Weiss arrived at breakfast before Ruby and Yang. Both girls still bore bags under their eyes and a thousand-yard stare due to residual test anxiety. Weiss nibbled at the edge of her toast, wondering when they'd get the exam results.

"Stop it," Blake said, glancing at her teammate.

"Stop what?"

"Stop freaking out. You have that look on your face you get when you're having a panic attack, but are trying to hide it."

Weiss huffed. "Schnees never have panic attacks!"

Blake snorted. "Then, you aren't even human. If I lived in Atlas, I'd have a freakout a day."

"It's really not so bad," Weiss protested. "The winters are much prettier. There's probably a foot of snow on the ground by now."

"That must be a joy for anyone who needs to shovel."

Weiss shrugged. "Most of the streets and driveways are plowed. Besides, it adds to the Yule spirit, don't you think? I mean, a pine tree with lights covering it is beautiful, but add some snow to the branches, and it's simply mesmerizing."

"True," Blake allowed. "Still, I prefer warmer weather myself. Back in Menagerie-" She quickly cut herself off, snapping her mouth shut.

Weiss looked sharply at her friend. "You're from…?"

"Shh," Blake hissed, still kicking herself for that slip. "Don't tell anyone! If people knew where I'm from, it'd be about the same as painting a Faunus sign on my forehead."

"I won't tell!" Weiss promised. "I've kept all your other secrets, haven't I?"

"Yeah, sorry," Blake sighed. "Just paranoid, I guess." She glanced around. None of the others had arrived yet.

Weiss hesitated before quietly asking: "Is it nice there?"

Blake bristled a little, but forced herself to remain calm. Menagerie wasn't meant to be "nice." It was an overly-crowded island given to the Faunus to shut them up. Still…

"The sunrises in the desert are beautiful," she admitted. "And…the marketplaces have a certain charm to them. Still, it's mostly full of thieves and poor merchants who are struggling to get by. Not many resources, after all."

"I see." Weiss looked back at her plate, her gut twisting uncomfortably. "What would…make things better there?"

Blake thought for a moment. "Well, it would be nice if it became more of a center of trade. Boats rarely go there unless they're ferrying Faunus who want to get out or even fewer Faunus who want to go back. There are a lot of fish and plants and other things that are only found there in abundance, so there could be some potential if more ships went there."

"More outside interaction, then?" Weiss tilted her head. "That seems rather simple."

"Tell that to all the big companies who don't want to be seen trading with the 'island of animals,'" Blake grumbled.

Before Weiss could think of a response, she noticed Ruby and Yang coming into the dining hall with their father. Trotting at their side was…

"Oh my goodness!" Weiss gasped, her eyes shining. "Who's this handsome boy?" She held out her hand, giggling as the small dog immediately bounded over and started licking it. She felt Blake hurriedly scooting away.

Taiyang laughed. "Man, Zwei likes you already. Sorry you didn't get to meet him yesterday. He was in my suitcase."

"Who's a good boy? You are! Yes, you are!" Weiss was cooing, scratching Zwei behind his ears. Her heart leaped as the dog sat down at her feet, thumping his hind leg. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been near a dog! Her father never allowed any animals besides dragons on the Schnee properties.

Blake was torn between smiling at how weirdly-adorable Weiss was acting, and cringing at the slobbering animal a few feet away from her. After a moment, Taiyang's words sank in and she turned to gape at him. "In…your suitcase?"

Ruby plopped down in a seat across from Weiss. "So, who wants to see the Yule lights tonight?" she chirped.

"I'm in!" Yang said. "And we need to hit the park in a few days. They'll be lighting up the entire square and all the trees. There's gonna be a bonfire, and gingerbread cookies being sold fresh!"

Weiss smiled. "Sounds like fun! Can this handsome boy come with us?"

Zwei yipped, bouncing up and down on his hind legs.

Blake was slowly shaking her head. "How…How do you keep a dog in a suitcase?

…..

"Come on, buddy! You can do it. Breathe right here. Just- No!" Sun groaned as Huo's head darted forward, snapping the apple off the pointed stick. "Oh, stop looking so smug!" he muttered, glaring at Huo's obvious smirk.

"He's not gonna do it, Sun," Neptune called over from Nymph's stall.

"You don't know that!" Sun snapped. "Hm. Maybe I need to find something he won't eat…"

Sage and Scarlet arrived at that moment. "Sun, are you trying to make your dragon into a living barbeque again?" Scarlet asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"I'm telling you, it's a great idea!" Sun insisted. "He's not big enough to engulf everything with flames yet, so now's the best time to try it. It'll totally work."

"None of the fire dragons have started breathing fire yet," Sage noted. "That won't be until next semester."

"Hey, Huo was able to heat his scales before anyone else," Sun pointed out. "He can pull ahead of the others in this too, right buddy?"

Huo swallowed the apple, licked his teeth, then opened his mouth for another.

Sage rolled his eyes as he opened the door to Zircon's stall. "Good morning," he greeted.

Zircon chirped happily, padding over to nuzzle Sage's chest. The wind had been loud last night. He hadn't liked it at all. He wished Sage would sleep in the stall with him.

When Scarlet entered Nimbus's stall, he saw his dragon staring at a corner. One of his eyes kept twitching from one side to the other. "Hey, boy."

Nimbus snapped to attention, closing his misbehaving eye and warbling a greeting. He really wished he could make himself look at things right…

Finally giving up on getting a roasted apple for breakfast, Sun tossed the pointed stick to the side and patted Huo's shoulder. "Ah well. Are you happy with the extra treats, at least?"

Huo snorted. He was, though eating too much could cause one to get lazy. He had very successfully saved his partner from over-indulging. He was a genius.

"Hey, Nep!" Sun called. "You need to come with me to the mailroom later on. Mom and Dad sent me a care package, and I told them how much you liked Mom's salted caramels from last time."

Neptune finished replacing the hay in Nymph's stall and kissed her nose before emerging. "She didn't have to do that," he murmured.

"Hey, she wanted to!" Sun grinned. "It's no problem." As he spoke though, he noticed a slight shadow passing over Neptune's face. He knew why, of course. Neptune likely wouldn't be getting any packages from his own parents.

It wasn't that the Vasilias family hated him. They just…didn't seem to care. They were the kind of rich, preppy people who were in their element throwing meaningless cocktail parties during sports matches. They hadn't been paying attention when Neptune wandered off as a kid to almost drown in the swamp. They didn't even remember why their son was afraid of the water. Once, they forgot about his fear entirely and signed him up for the school's swim team. That entire year had been a nightmare.

Sun's parents, while distant, at least gave a damn about him. They just preferred to let him make his own mistakes and learn to be independent, which he was fine with. Neptune had never quite learned how to be self-sufficient, and was instead caught in this weird limbo between trying to be a cool guy who needs no one, and trying not to lean too obviously on the people around him.

As far as Sun was concerned, Neptune could lean on him as much as he needed. He glanced toward Nymph's stall and smiled. _With Nymph around, though, he probably won't need to for much longer._

Team SSSN finished caring for their dragons and headed toward the cafeteria. They could see the other families who had been arriving since the end of exams, and hurried to introduce themselves to Taiyang and the Arcs.

Sage couldn't help but notice that Neptune wasn't flirting with Jaune's older sisters. That was strange. The blue-haired teen was usually very quick to flirt with any attractive woman he met.

 _Then again,_ Sage realized. _He really hasn't done that since we got to Beacon. He didn't flirt with Weiss, Yang, or anyone when we first met them. Hm. Maybe being a Dragon Rider has made him more mature._

Yes, that was probably it.

 **Sure, Sage. That's totally the reason. Also, some more Arkos/Team Sloth tidbits for you. You're welcome.**

 **Have I mentioned that my absolute favorite scene with Weiss was when she first met Zwei? Because holy crap, I have never wanted to cuddle my snow baby so much! I headcanon that all of the Schnee kids secretly love dogs. I also headcanon that they snort if you get them laughing hard enough. Whitley's snort is the loudest.**

 **Next week will be a very special chapter, so stay tuned!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	50. A Dragonets' Night Out

**Happy Halloween, everyone! I have a special treat for you guys on this fiftieth chapter. The votes are in, and most of my readers said that they wanted to see the dragons talk. Starting now, there will be dialogue between the dragons. I decided against italicizing their dialogue or putting it in brackets, because that would be more of an annoyance than anything. I'll just trust you guys to remember that the dragons can understand the humans, but the humans cannot understand the dragons unless they specifically speak using human words.**

 **Enjoy!**

That night, snow continued to fall. Tiny white flakes cascaded from the sky to silently nestle in the grass, creating a cold blanket over everything. All was quiet, except for one sound that came from a certain earth dragon's stall. It was a sound that came and went every few minutes, preceded by and followed with an annoyed huff. It was a rattle of metal against wood and reinforced plastic, an insistent jiggling followed by a clunk.

A loud groan sounded from the metal stall nearby. "Pit, would you give it a rest? I'm trying to sleep here!" Fang rolled over on his bed of fireproof cloth, digging his claws into the mangled remains of his latest rubber toy with an exasperated snarl.

"Hush!" Pit snapped. His yellow eyes were narrowed and the faint glow from his freckles painted a night sky pattern across the darkened walls of his own stall. "I almost have it." Focusing once more on the latch that held the door closed, he allowed his powers to activate. He tried to remember how it had felt to stop Twiggy from falling from that tree, how it had felt to lift Specter for a few moments, and tried to concentrate that sensation on this smaller target. If he could just lift it another few millimeters without jerking it around…

"Yes!" The earth dragon puffed his chest out triumphantly as he heard the telltale click of the latch opening and saw the door open just a crack.

Fang, suddenly not at all interested in sleep, rolled back onto his stomach. "Wait… You actually did it?!"

"And you said it was a waste of time!" Pit gloated, nudging the door open and peering outside. "Huh. It looks really different before the humans get a chance to walk on it," he noted, staring at the unbroken layer of snow on the ground.

"Hey, quit staring at the snow and let me out!" Fang growled, walking over to his door and pawing insistently at it. "Come on, don't hog all the fun!"

Pit snorted. "I almost want to leave you in there so I won't have to listen to your grumbling." A cold wind swept by, causing the earth dragon to shiver. "But, I do need someone to keep me warm." Walking over to Fang's stall, he sought out the latch and slid his tail underneath the handle. While he could probably use his powers, he was rather tired. Now that he was outside, this was more practical.

A worried warble sounded nearby. "I don't think we should be doing this. We're not allowed to leave the stalls." Storm was pacing back and forth nervously.

"Says who?" Fang snorted. "The older dragons can fly wherever they want, and we're just as smart. The locks are for the idiots who would wander off and freeze to death or something." He leaned against the door. "Hey, Pit. How's the-WHOA!" He yelped as the door suddenly opened, causing him to barrel out, rolling over and knocking Pit to the ground.

Pit hissed irritably. "What were you were saying about idiots? Be quiet!"

A familiar, eerie whistle sounded from another stall. "Well, I would like to come out. From what I hear, the weather is simply glorious tonight." Specter tossed his head, scratching his claws eagerly on the floor.

Pit shoved Fang off of him before padding over to Specter's stall. "Please don't lean against the door."

Specter let out a superior sniff. "Please. I'm not that stupid."

"You're stupid enough to stick your tongue to an ice block multiple times…" Fang muttered, coughing pointedly.

"Oh, shut up!"

"How about you, Storm?" Fang asked, walking over to Storm's stall while Pit worked on Specter's door. "You in?"

"I…"

"Aw, come on! Don't leave me alone with the priss and the nag," he urged.

"Hey!" the ice and earth dragons protested.

Storm couldn't help but giggle, though she still hesitated. "What if someone sees us? I don't want Ruby mad at me…"

"Storm, I don't think Ruby _can_ get mad," Fang muttered. "If anything, I got the most to worry about. I mean, have you seen Yang when her eyes go all red. It's freaky. Awesome, but freaky."

"Well…" Storm really didn't want to be left out of this adventure. _Ruby is asleep,_ she reasoned. _She'll never know. And it's not like we're going to go far or do anything bad._ "Okay."

Fang wasted no time in slipping his tail under the latch. "Let's see, just lift the thing up…"

In the meantime, Specter padded out of his stall, barely suppressing a wild bark of joy when he saw the outside. "Oh, this is lovely!" He ran his claws through the snow, shivering with pleasure as the powdery coldness slipped across his scales.

"Yes, lovely." Pit hurried over to Fang, dancing irritably from paw to paw. "Erm, once you release Storm, I could really use a wing."

"Yeah, yeah. Hold on." Fang stuck out his tongue as he concentrated on getting his tail in the right position. He snorted proudly when he heard and felt the click. "Okay, Storm. You're free!"

Storm peeked her head out, blue eyes wide as they darted around to make sure no one else was in the area. Once she was satisfied, she stepped out, immediately huddling under one of Fang's wings as the fire dragon heated up his scales. "Should we get the others?" she wondered.

Pit, slipping under Fang's other wing with some difficulty due to his greater size, shook his head. "No. Four dragonets can stay hidden. If we have twelve out, it'll be total chaos, and everyone will wake up and want to be let out. Let's keep this with our team for now."

Storm shifted nervously. "I hope Guang isn't mad he got left out."

Fang rolled his eyes. "Storm, you always worry about the ones who literally never get mad about anything. Guang's stupidly happy all day, every day."

"He is not stupid!" Storm protested, her head fins flaring out defiantly.

"Easy, Storm. Fang wasn't trying to be insulting," Pit soothed while giving the fire dragon a pointed look.

Fang huffed. "Everyone's so sensitive. Jeez…"

Specter, meanwhile, was rolling around in the snow, purring as he scrubbed his back against the frozen grass. "This is heavenly! You all really should try it!"

Storm shivered. "No thanks. I think that's just an ice dragon thing."

Specter stood up, shaking a little and letting his frills come out fully to take in the cold. "Well, if I'm the only one who wants to play in the snow, why are we outside?"

"Ooh! I have an idea!" Storm chirped. "Why don't we look for the moms and dads?"

Pit tilted his head at the smaller dragonet. "The what?"

"You know," Storm insisted. "The ones who made all of us! Tempest told me that moms and dads make the eggs that hatch into dragons, humans, and Faunus! Having the same moms and dads are what make brothers and sisters."

"But…we aren't related," Specter noted. "I don't think I have any brothers or sisters. Maybe I don't have a mom or dad either." He glanced to the side. "I mean, I'm the only ice dragon here."

Storm bounded out from under Fang's wing to nuzzle Specter's shoulder. "Don't think that. Maybe there's an ice dragon we haven't met yet. We don't know all the dragons here, right?"

"True," Specter allowed. "I suppose it couldn't hurt."

"I don't think we'll find mine," Pit muttered. "I don't remember much, but I don't think I hatched here. I remember being in dry grass…being carried for a long time…" He shook his head. "It's all fuzzy now…"

Fang yawned. "Are we gonna keep talking, or are we gonna actually try to find something? I already have an idea where to look."

The others looked at him with surprise. "Really?" Pit asked skeptically.

"What, you don't think I hear stuff?" Fang tossed his head. "A few days ago, during a lesson, Tank asked Pepper where eggs come from. I wasn't paying much attention, but Pepper did say something about brood dragons. We just gotta find out what kind of dragons those are and find them."

"Ooh!" Storm gasped, her eyes widening excitedly. "I think I know! When I first met Penny, I was taken into a barn I'd never seen before. It had a bunch of dragons in there, but they didn't look or smell like any of us. You think those could be the brood dragons?"

"It's as good of a lead as any," Pit said. "You think you can find that barn again?"

"Uh…" Storm shuffled a forepaw in the snow. "Maaaaybe?"

"Well, that's encouraging," Specter sighed.

"Hey, it's not my fault! The cold makes my nose all stuffy." Storm rubbed her snout against her shoulder, sniffing loudly. "And everything looks different with this white junk everywhere…"

"At least we'll leave tracks," Pit reasoned. "So we won't get lost. Why don't you just pick a direction, and we can see what happens next?"

"Okay!" Storm looked around for a moment. "Hm. The field's that way, and the courtyard's that way… I say we try the courtyard!" With that decided, she scurried back under Fang's other wing. "Let's go!"

"It'll take all night with both of you pressed against me," Fang growled.

"I suppose I'll see you whenever you get there!" Specter trilled, prancing away cheerfully.

"Don't lick any lamp posts on the way there!" Fang called after him.

Pit shook his head slowly. "I honestly don't understand him. He acts so self-important and refined, but he is just such a… Hm… What's the word?"

"Dork?" Fang supplied helpfully.

"Yes, that's it!"

"I bet Huo could come up with a better word," Storm warbled playfully, glancing at Fang. "He's really creative when it comes to stuff like that. Maybe we should wake him up."

Fang groaned, flattening his ears. "Let's not. I put up with that barking loony enough already."

The three walked until they got to the end of the stall area. Storm groaned. "Ugh. This is taking forever. I'll deal with the cold." She bounded ahead, trying to cover the distance in leaps so that her feet wouldn't touch the ground for too long.

Fang glanced at Pit. "So, are you going to take the high road and deal with the cold so we can both walk properly?"

"Nope."

"Of course not…"

Storm, meanwhile, found Specter sitting in a patch of grass at the edge of the courtyard, staring at the sky. She crept close to him. "Hey, be careful. The humans who take care of the trees are out at this time." She glanced around nervously. "Did anyone see me?"

"I think they would have shouted if they had," Specter reasoned. "Look up, Storm."

Storm tilted her head up and let out a gasp. The snow was still falling, but the glow of the lamplights made each flake look like a tiny yellow star. "Pretty!" She turned her head to the side and let out a sneeze. "Too bad it's so cold."

"I wish it could always be like this," Specter sighed, spreading out his frills so that he could feel the flakes falling on the thin membranes. He shivered delightedly at the feeling.

Storm looked around. "Okay, I think… Yeah, that's the path leading to the barn I was in. I remember because Ruby took me right to the big building from there to talk to Ragnar's partner." She looked at Specter. "What do you think a brood dragon is like? What's brood mean?"

"Hm. It sounds earthy. Maybe they're related to earth dragons somehow," Specter speculated.

The sound of shuffling paws signaled Pit and Fang's approach.

"Okay," Fang growled. "We need to sneak, so get out from under my wing!"

"I know, I know." Pit shook his head in exasperation as he moved to stand behind the fire dragon. "Thank you, Fang."

"This way," Storm hissed, creeping along on her belly through the bushes, which were definitely not sufficient for hiding four dragons of their size. This was going to be difficult.

At several points, they heard footsteps and froze, waiting for them to pass. Storm's nose started to twitch. "Haa… Haaa…"

"Don't sneeze!" Specter growled.

"Hey, did you hear something?" a human voice said from a distance away.

"Great," Fang snarled.

"Quiet!" Pit hissed.

The footsteps were coming closer…closer…

Suddenly, a shadow passed overhead, and a dragon landed in the courtyard with a loud thud. A familiar voice warbled "Lo," in human tongue.

"Oh, hey Nautilus!" the human said. "Bit cold, isn't it? Don't be out too long, boy."

Nautilus snorted. "I can judge my body temperature just fine, thank you." In human tongue, he just said "Gud. Safe."

The dragonets waited, holding their breaths as the footsteps retreated. They winced as a shadow passed over them.

"Bit late for a stroll, isn't it?" Nautilus's deep, stern voice washed over them like a heavy wave.

"It was Fang and Pit's idea!" Specter said immediately, sitting bolt upright. "Pit used his powers to undo the latch, and Fang helped! I was just supervising so that no one would get injured, sir!"

"Oh, you little rat!" Fang's hackles went up as he showed off his teeth.

"Specter, that's not fair," Storm reprimanded. "We all wanted to see the brood dragons."

"Storm, shut up. I'm trying to get us out of trouble…" Specter muttered, his black eyes fixed on Nautilus's narrowed milky eyes.

The water dragon tossed his head irritably. "Stop placing blame, Specter. You're better than that."

Specter's wings and frills flattened. "Yes, sir…"

"Now, why did you want to see the brood dragons?" Nautilus asked, glancing at each of the dragonets in turn.

"We, um…" Storm shuffled her paws. "We wanted to meet our moms and dads."

At this, a strange, sad look came to Nautilus's face. "Ah…" He looked to the side for a moment, then turned back to the four. "You won't find them here. Your parents weren't from here."

"I knew it!" Specter declared. "The ice brood dragons must be somewhere else!"

"There are no specific ice brood dragons," Nautilus explained. "Brood dragons are…different from us."

"Different how?" Pit wondered.

"They…" The water dragon sighed, scratching behind one of his fins. "They don't have powers, or…the same level of intelligence that we have. We sacrifice the ability to have eggs in order to be elementals."

The dragonets shifted, looking curiously at each other. None of them could have eggs? Was that a good or bad thing?

"But, where are our moms and dads?" Pit wondered. "If they aren't here, where are they?"

Nautilus sighed. "For you, Pit, I don't know. You came to us a month before the hatching of the other freshman dragonets. I'm sure Ragnar told you this."

"Yeah." Pit nodded slowly. "He did. I thought he meant I was just early."

"There are special circumstances surrounding you, Pit. You will be told more after the next semester starts, I expect." Nautilus paused, wondering just how much to reveal. "The power you used to open your latch… You probably shouldn't use it in front of anyone."

"Why?"

"It's different," Nautilus explained. "And to some, different can be scary. And scared people are very, very dangerous. Do you understand?"

"I…think so…" Pit thought back to the other day, when Blake had looked so panicked when he had lifted Specter. Was Blake afraid of him? An ugly sinking feeling appeared in his stomach.

Fang pawed at the ground. "What about me?"

"Your egg came from the Xiao Long broodery. There are two brood dragons there, who are your parents," Nautilus said. "Storm comes from the broodery next door. Specter is from the Schnee broodery in Atlas."

"Atlas…" Specter tilted his head. He had heard that name a few times before. "Is that where ice dragons come from?"

"I believe so," Nautilus said. He wished that Glynda talked about more things around him. He truly wanted to give these children the answers they wanted. "It's late. You need to go to bed before someone else catches you."

"We…aren't in trouble?" Specter asked hopefully.

Nautilus cracked a rare, crooked smile. "Not today. If I catch you out again, however, you'll discover just how forceful a jet of water can be."

The four dragonets gulped loudly. Fang shivered a little despite his best efforts not to. They walked back to their stalls in subdued silence.

"Well, that was a bust," Fang grumbled.

"I don't know." Specter scratched at the ground. "I'm not sure if I want to see the brood dragons now. Are they really so unintelligent? I always figured that Tornado was the dumbest dragon alive."

"I still wanna see them," Storm said, though she did feel just a bit unsure. She hadn't liked the weird, unsettled look on Nautilus's face when he had described the brood dragons. "Pit, will you be okay to latch your door?"

"Huh?" Pit looked up. "Oh, yes. Of course." He waited for the others to enter their stalls, locked the doors with his tail, and entered his own stall. He glared at the door, concentrating as he had before, until the latch was locked again. As the glow from his freckles faded, he curled up on his bed, thinking back to Nautilus's words.

 _Am I really different from other earth dragons?_ he wondered. _Is that why Blake seems so nervous a lot of the time? Do I make her nervous?_ He looked at his claws, his scaly brows furrowing. _Is there…something wrong with me?_

 **Having the dragons talk is actually going to do a lot of good for the story. I have the backlog going, and already the dragon dialogue is allowing info to be revealed to the readers that wouldn't be revealed until much later if limited to the human perspective. I'm reminded of the anime** _ **Ginga Nagareboshi Gin**_ **, which is about sentient dogs. The first few episodes are solely from the point of view of the humans. It isn't until later, when the main dog is older, that the dogs begin speaking and the point of view shifts to their pack. I'd highly recommend it, if you like old anime (and can tolerate an unfortunate lack of strong female characters…)**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	51. Sibling Bonds

**Rawr, everyone! Happy Dragon Tuesday! I'm so sorry I didn't post last week. As I said on my profile, there was a huge storm in my area which wiped out my power from Sunday to Wednesday. Electricity and heat are wonderful things, folks. Don't take them for granted!**

 **Hopefully, this Qrow chapter will make it up to you. Enjoy!**

Qrow needed to take a detour.

He hated himself, because he knew this meant he'd probably not arrive at Beacon until just before Yule, which meant spending less time with Tai and the girls, but there was no way he could pass this up. A broodery had been raided in the next town over, and the Rider on the gold dragon had been sighted again. It was time for a much-needed chat with another member of his family.

After landing in the town in question, a place called Vermillion, he left a note with the innkeeper that read _"The murder must meet."_ The man's expression clouded, and he was quick to give Qrow a free shot of whiskey after hurriedly pocketing the note.

Qrow wanted to see if he could maybe get a few more freebies, but a tap on the side of the inn prompted him to down his drink and go back outside. "What?"

Salty growled pointedly, nodding to the east, where the ransacked broodery was. They had passed over it when arriving in town, and the water dragon knew that they should go there next.

"I know, I know." Qrow patted his dragon's shoulder. "Couldn't I just get one more drink first?"

Salty shook his head. "No," he growled in human tongue. That was another word he was very good at saying. _It's never just one more drink. We both know that._

Qrow sighed. "Okay. Let's head to the broodery." He tapped Salty's neck, urging his dragon to lean down. "Our sisters are coming," he whispered.

Salty's fins twitched, and he growled sharply. _Phoenix had better have a good explanation!_ He thought about the stolen eggs that would never find their way to other brooderies or dragonries. He imagined the kinds of people who probably had them now. If Phoenix had anything to do with this...

Well, he wasn't sure what he'd do. He couldn't hurt her, after all. No dragon worth anything would ever truly harm their sibling.

He had once met an earth dragon who had been retired to a broodery after losing his Rider and his brother. Apparently, the two Riders had gotten into a fight that had killed one. The dragon of the dead Rider, a fire dragon, had gone mad and tried to kill the other Rider. The earth dragon, of course, had fought back to protect his Rider. The two brothers fought until their scales were coated with blood, but neither one delivered the final blow necessary to end the fight, not even the frenzied fire dragon. Neither one used their powers.

Finally, the authorities came. The Rider was arrested and put on death row, and the crazed fire dragon had been shot. The earth dragon had almost been sent to the fighting pits, but Ozpin had intervened on his behalf, arranging for him to be sent to one of the nicest brooderies in Vale.

Salty sometimes thought about that dragon, remembering the complete lack of life or emotion in his eyes and voice when he had recounted his story, and wondered if a death in the pits would have been a kinder fate.

When they arrived at the broodery, Qrow went inside to talk with the owners. They bustled around preparing him coffee, expressing relief that someone was taking this seriously.

"It was awful!" the middle-aged woman who seemed to be in charge said, sitting down and nudging a plate of cookies toward Qrow. "All of a sudden, the sheds were on fire, along with one of the barns! Of course, I have an automatic system that opens everything, allowing my dragons to run, but I still had to go in and coax a few of them out.

Qrow noticed the burns on the woman's arms. "Lucky for them you were there," he said, his tone respectful.

"Would've been nicer if a Rider had been here," the woman snorted before quickly correcting herself. "Oh, don't think I'm ungrateful that you're here now! I know you aren't psychic. It just seems that, with all that's happening, there should be Riders assigned to guard all the brooderies. I mean, dragons are valuable!"

"That they are," Qrow agreed. "Did you see anything noticeable?"

"Well, you probably already heard about that Rider on the gold fire dragon. Imagine! A Rider helping with this! Probably one of those no-good rogues. I hope the Flight Squads are on top of this."

"I wouldn't know. I work solo," Qrow said, taking a sip. "But I'm on my way to Beacon, so I'll make sure Dragonmaster Ozpin hears about you."

The woman gasped. " _The_ Dragonmaster Ozpin? Oh my. That would be very helpful indeed." She thought for a moment. "Oh yes, there was one more thing! There was a symbol on the airship, something painted in red. I'll bet it was those awful White Fang creatures! I heard they've been going after other brooderies. I hope that helps."

"It does." Qrow took a sip of the coffee. It was good, though he wished there was something stronger in it. "Did you see the Rider? Any distinguishing features?"

The woman shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. It was too dark."

Qrow wrote down an email and handed it to her. "Here. This is one of Ozpin's emails. I'll tell him to look for your message. Contact him if you think of anything else."

"Oh, thank you!" The woman smiled brightly. "I will do that. Please finish your coffee, and have a cookie before you go."

When Qrow came outside, obligingly munching on a cookie, he found Salty near the destroyed barn, talking with the brood dragons that were lying in temporary shelters.

"Guhld," a brood dragon was saying to Salty. "Buh-buhl…" She gestured to her face and back.

Salty nodded slowly, trying to figure out what the broody was saying. It was always difficult talking to non-elementals, as they didn't have the same grasp of language that elementals had. "Was the dragon male or female?" he asked, speaking slowly.

The broodies turned to each other, making a series of garbled sounds that almost sounded like speech. Then, the female looked at him again. "Buhl-ak." She pointed to her face again.

Salty breathed a sigh. _Well, that was helpful._ He turned to Qrow, barking a greeting as he approached.

"Hey, buddy. No new info. Mighta been the White Fang, maybe not." He shrugged as he climbed on. "Let's go."

"I hope your home is rebuilt soon," Salty said politely to the brood dragons, who tilted their heads and made those garbled sounds again. He was a little relieved to take off.

Qrow stayed at the inn for a day, a night, and most of the next day before the innkeeper approached him at the bar.

"There's a guest in your room," he murmured. "She says 'The carrion bird flies toward the sunset.'"

Qrow gulped down his drink, leaving payment and a generous tip on the counter. "Thanks." He went outside for only a second, long enough to tell Salty: "Your sister's in the forest to the west. Go talk to her if you want." He didn't wait to see his dragon's reaction before going inside.

He plodded up the stairs, pausing to take a bracing breath, then opened the door to his room.

Raven Branwen was sitting casually, sprawled out on his bed, her feet propped up on the only chair in the room, a not-so-subtle power play that forced him to either stand or ask for the chair. He chose to stand.

"Raven," he said coldly, closing the door and leaning against a nearby wall, folding his arms.

"Hello, brother," she replied, her voice neutral. "What do you want?"

"Answers," Qrow growled. "You got here pretty quick, so you must've been nearby when you got my message. Was it maybe an innkeeper in a nearby town? A town a short flight away from the Vermillion Broodery?"

Raven smirked. "You're not very subtle in your interrogation, dear brother."

"I don't need subtlety with you," Qrow muttered. "You'd see through it anyway. I don't waste my time on games."

"True, true," Raven agreed. She stretched her arms in a feigned display of casualness. "So, how's Salty?"

"You could ask him yourself, but you're never around long enough when we do see each other."

Raven's eyes flashed. "Qrow, we both know that your family values lectures are a waste of time." As quickly as her anger flared up, it simmered down again. "So, skip the small-talk and talk about the task at hand, then? Fine." She took her feet off the chair and leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and knitting her fingers together.

Qrow waited, still not sitting down.

"You need to stop investigating these robberies, Qrow," Raven said, her voice low and serious. "What's happening right now is a setup for something bigger, something necessary."

"So, you are involved." Qrow's expression darkened. "What's stopping me from taking you to Ozpin?"

Raven smirked. "I'd like to see you try. Do you think I came alone? My rogues could make you disappear in a moment. We both know that. I wonder what Salty would do if you suddenly went missing. Dragons can be so unpredictable."

 _Bitch!_ Qrow gritted his teeth, wondering for a crazy moment if one of his sister's fellow rogues was hiding under the bed. Was one in the bar downstairs? Were there any in the forest with Salty and Phoenix? Only his unquestioning knowledge that Phoenix would never let any harm come to her brother kept him from truly panicking. _I trust my sister's dragon more than my own sister!_ he thought bitterly, choosing to say nothing. Even if she was bluffing, he couldn't risk any complications. Ozpin wouldn't be happy if his best agent suddenly vanished at this point in the game.

"That's a good boy," Raven cooed, smirking when this caused Qrow to clench his fists. "As I was saying, you need to step back from all of this. Believe it or not, I don't want to see my only brother dead. However, I may not be able to stop the people who would be far less hesitant about killing you if you got in their way. Do you understand?"

"Is that a threat?"

"It's a warning, Qrow," Raven said, fixing him with a firm glare. "A warning I hope you'll take."

"What's happening, sis?" Qrow asked, hating the word, and the emotion that managed to find its way through his throat as he said it. He couldn't show weakness around her, but this implied betrayal hurt far worse than he cared to admit. "Can't you throw me a bone, for old time's sake?"

"Begging, are we?" Raven asked, though her tone had softened ever so slightly. "I'm afraid I can't tell you, brother. Trust me, though: Everyone will know what's happening when the time is right. When that happens, you're going to need to decide whose side you're on, and what kind of world you want to be living in when everything ends."

Qrow opened his mouth to ask another question, but Raven was already standing up. He realized that he wouldn't get any more answers from her. Instead, he just said: "See yah around."

"Goodbye, brother," Raven said calmly, walking briskly toward the door. She glanced over her shoulder. "Oh, your next drink when you go back downstairs is on me. I know you'll be needing it." She flashed a smirk before closing the door.

Qrow waited, counting his breaths until he was certain that she was gone. Then, he walked downstairs, past the bar, and out the door to find Salty.

…

As soon as Qrow closed the door to the inn, Salty spread his wings and flew toward the forest. He flew low, calling out to his sister. "Phoenix? Phoenix?"

Then, he saw a small plume of smoke rising, and sought out a spot to land in a way-too-tiny clearing. He crashed a little through the trees and stumbled as he landed, ending up on his side.

A soft chuff sounded nearby. "I thought water dragons are supposed to be graceful."

Phoenix peeked her head through the trees. Her pure, golden scales took on a leafy pattern as dapples of orangish-pink sunlight touched them. Her red eyes glittered with a combination of amusement and apprehension. "Hello, my brother."

Salty sat up, noting the lack of dirt smudges on his sister. _Of course she managed to land in the trees without falling… Showoff._ "How are you, Phoenix?" he asked.

"I've been well," she replied. Her smile quickly faded at her brother's expectant look. "I know what you're going to ask," she murmured, pressing her ears against her head.

"Are you going to answer?" Salty asked, narrowing his eyes and hissing a little at the end of his sentence.

Phoenix let out a mirthless huff. "Oh, don't try to intimidate me. It won't work."

"I'm worried, Phoenix," Salty urged. "And so is Qrow. If you and Raven are in any kind of trouble…"

"We're not!" Phoenix insisted, her tail lashing. "We're doing great! Really great!"

"Yeah, robbing brooderies sounds 'really great,'" Salty snarled.

Phoenix winced. "I didn't do that, Salty."

"They saw a golden fire dragon!"

"What, you think I'm the only fire dragon with gold scales? Please." She rolled her eyes, a smirk coming to her muzzle.

Salty's fins flicked. _So, there's another fire Rider involved, and he or she is riding a gold dragon._

Phoenix stiffened, realizing her slip of tongue too late. "Argh! I hate when you do that!"

"It would be easier if you just told me," Salty said, his fins drooping a little. "We used to be able to talk about anything."

Phoenix bowed her head. "I wish we could, Salty. I really do. Things just need to be kept quiet now. You have no idea how much is at stake, especially for us."

"What do you mean by us?" Salty asked, taking a step forward.

There was a moment of hesitation before Phoenix breathed a resigned sigh, deciding to give just a little information. "Us dragons."

Salty's thick tail thumped on the ground. "What does that mean? Are these people fighting for dragons? Why are they stealing eggs, then?!"

"Because that's the only way they'll have dragons!" Phoenix snapped, lifting her head and fixing her brother with a blazing stare. "Because the Council humans are the ones who decide who gets eggs and who doesn't! That's how they stay in power, and the dragons and Riders in Raven's tribe are branded as lawless rogues!"

"The Council?" Salty felt a growl rising in his throat as he thought of the shady, dragon-hating humans who were somehow in charge of people like Ozpin and Qrow. "What do they have to do with this?" _So, the whole tribe is involved with this as well. I should've figured._

"They won't have anything to do with anything if things go our way," Phoenix said, baring her fangs eagerly. "You see? This is a good thing!"

She paused, realizing that she was close to letting something slip, and reined herself in with a few deep breaths. "Look, I've already said too much. Just stop investigating this, and keep your head low. There's a place for both you and Qrow if you make the right decision and join us when the time comes."

"What kind of place?"

"A good one!" Phoenix insisted. "A really good one! Please, brother. Don't follow the wrong path."

"I follow whatever path my Rider puts me on," Salty growled.

Phoenix wings drooped and she smiled sadly. "Don't we all?"

There was movement in the trees as Raven approached. She barely glanced at Salty as she approached her dragon and mounted. "Let's go, Phoenix," she urged, clicking her tongue.

Phoenix gave Salty one last, anguished look. "Goodbye, my brother. Give my love to Tempest and Quake the next time you see them."

"I will," Salty promised. He watched, his heart thudding painfully as he watched Phoenix climb up a pair of sturdy trees, then jump from the tops, taking flight immediately. It was one of the most advanced take-off techniques. _Our old teachers would be proud..._

He watched until his sister was only a gold speck in the sky, until tears blurred his vision and he had to bow his head, fat droplets trickling down his snout. He dug his claws into the dirt, his shoulders hunched.

He didn't look up until he heard Qrow approaching. His Rider walked over, placing a hand on his foreleg. Neither one spoke. After a moment, Salty realized that his Rider's shoulders were starting to shake.

Rumbling quietly, he lifted Qrow into his arms, sat back on his haunches, and cradled the human against his chest. He felt moisture on his scales and shut his eyes.

He knew that this was a rarity, that Qrow hated shedding tears. That was why he drank so much. When he was drunk, he didn't cry. When he didn't cry, he could act as if nothing was wrong.

But everything was wrong. Even if Salty didn't know what, he knew that everything was horribly wrong. Qrow knew it too, even if it was to a lesser extent. All of these meetings with Raven had been slowly but surely whittling away at those walls the jaded human had worked so hard to build up since his sister's departure and Summer's death. The knowledge that some unknown thing was coming, that Raven was somehow involved, caused more pain than he cared to admit.

What would happen to them in the coming months? What would happen to Raven and Phoenix? Who else would get pulled into whatever was happening?

Salty didn't know the answers. All he could do was hold and comfort his Rider until the bitter comfort of alcohol finally became too strong of a call, and pulled Qrow away from him yet again.

 **So, something I'm absolutely going to address in this fic is Qrow's alcoholism. So far, his drunkenness has been played off as comedic in canon, which I think is a problem. While being a drunk can certainly be used for comedy, it should also be balanced out with the fact that alcoholism is a serious problem. In canon, he's been alone most of the time, and hasn't had to face too many consequences. (I hope he's forced to sober up, now that he's acting as a guardian for five kids.) In this AU, he has his dragon with him at all times, and Salty is absolutely being drained by this, as we'll see in greater detail as the story unfolds.**

 **I'm also looking forward to having Raven as a major player in this story, since she didn't find her way into "Once in a Shattered Moon." I think I'm keeping her pretty in character based on what we've seen of her so far.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	52. Snow Battle

**Rawr, everyone! I got a nice long one for you this week. Also, I actually have a new recommendation! If you're a fan of 90's animated series that were obviously made to sell toys, but are still entertaining (you know the kind I'm talking about), check out** _ **Dragon Flyz**_ **. It takes place in the 41** **st** **century, after most of the earth has been turned into an inhospitable wasteland of lava. A floating city called Airlandis holds the last of humanity, which sends dragonators (dragon riders/aviators) to Earth to collect fuel and battle the gargoyle-like creatures that now inhabit the planet. It's a fun little action series that makes you feel nostalgic for the 90's.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Early one morning, a mass text was sent out between the members of Teams RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN. It read simply: _"The war begins after breakfast."_ This declaration was met with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Some, like Nora and Ruby, dragged their teammates from sleep so that they could get breakfast as soon as it was served. Others, like Ren, Blake, and Scarlet, dragged their feet and groaned with longing for their warm, soft beds.

Still, everyone ended up in the cafeteria as it opened, and sat down to a hasty breakfast. The sleepier students perked up a little when their stomachs were full, though they still shuffled on the way to the dragonets' stalls, slogging through the new layer of snow that had blanketed the grounds over the course of the night.

The dragonets expressed confusion when their partners arrived. The sun was just rising. Wasn't it too early to be getting up?

Ruby giggled with excitement as she zipped around Storm's stall, checking the hay in the litter area, refilling the food and water dishes, and giving her dragon a kiss on the snout. "I hope you're ready, Storm! We're going to kick butt today!"

Storm tilted her head at her partner's excitement. _Kick butt? Whose butt? Oh, who cares? Ruby's happy!_ She bounced up, barking eagerly.

"That's my girl!" Ruby patted her shoulder. "Eat up. This is going to be awesome!"

Weiss, meanwhile, was polishing Specter's scales with a clean cloth as he ate his breakfast. "I know it's a bit early, but I think you'll enjoy what the others have in mind."

Specter ate quickly, noticing that the door was cracked and that Weiss was wearing heavier clothes. _We must be going for a stroll in the snow! How lovely!_

Blake was smiling apologetically at Pit in his stall. "I'm sure we'll wake up fully once this thing starts. I still want to know what genius thought a snowball fight this early in the morning was a good idea."

Pit yawned, taking his time stretching. He didn't know what a snowball fight was, but he didn't want to be up this early. At the very least, he could get ready at his own pace. _I wonder how Freya's handling this,_ he thought, his ears flicking. _Nora will probably have to drag her out._

As he woke himself up, he also kept an eye on how Blake was acting. She seemed calm, even content. _I'm not making her nervous, then,_ he thought, remembering Nautilus's warning about his powers. Maybe she would only be scared if he used them again.

Fang, meanwhile, had stuck his head into his bedding and was growling every time Yang touched him. "No. I'm not going outside! It's dark and cold, and I don't want to!"

"Come on, buddy," Yang urged. "This is gonna be so fun."

 _Why can't I make human noises yet?_ he thought despairingly. He lifted his head, barked once, then hid again.

Yang pondered what to do for a moment, then smirked. "Well, okay. I guess I'll have to tell Sun and Huo that you were too tired to compete."

Fang sat up immediately. _Over my dead body!_ "Let's get this over with," he growled. Though Yang couldn't understand him, he felt that the sentiment was there.

The group gathered outside the stalls, the dragons and a few of the Riders still yawning. Twiggy hurried to hide under Titan's wing.

"It's cold," she complained.

Titan gently nuzzled the top of her head, hating that he couldn't heat up his scales for her. "Want to stand by Fang?" he asked.

Twiggy pressed closer to her brother, easily noticing the sad tone in his voice. "No, I'm okay with you."

"What's going on? Are we going to play? I think we're going to play!" Ao Guang was bouncing up and down next to Ren. He paused, noticing that one of his siblings was missing. "Hey, where's Freya? Freya, where are you? You still in your stall? Wake up!"

Freya, as Pit had predicted, was being pulled from her stall by a groaning Nora. "Why…?" she yawned. "Too…early…"

Zircon was staying close to Sage. "W-Why are we out s-s-so early? Is s-something wrong?" His eyes darted around nervously.

"Don't worry," Pit called over. "It's some kind of game. Nothing to be afraid of."

Zircon gulped loudly. "Is it a d-dangerous game?"

Everyone jumped as a roar sounded from Huo's stall. "PISS OFF!"

Nymph rolled her eyes. "Language, Huo!"

"FUCK YOUR LANGUAGE! I'M NOT GETTING UP!"

Twiggy winced. "Where does he learn those words?"

"Pepper sometimes curses when agitated," Titan murmured. "Huo picked up on what she was saying pretty quickly."

Nimbus stretched out his large wings, shaking his head a few times to try and focus his vision. "Nymph, I can't see today. Do I need to see for this game?"

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Nymph soothed. "Just close one eye if you need to."

Nimbus obligingly winked one eye. "What if all animals originally had one eye, but they split apart and never turned back?" he mused.

"What's the matter, hothead?" Fang shouted to Huo's stall. "Can't handle the cold?"

"Go to hell!" Huo snarled, though he did end up following Sun out, snapping his jaws shut just short of his arm. "You owe me," he growled at his oblivious partner. "If I don't get extra meat or apples for this, I'm burning your fuzzy tail off."

"Good boy, Huo," Sun said, patting his neck. "Get ready to kick some major ass!"

Ruby jumped up and down. "Okay, now that we're all out, how should we do this?"

"Boys versus girls. Duh," Yang replied, rolling her eyes. "I mean, we do have equal teams."

"Aw yeah!" Sun grinned. "You ladies are going _down_!"

Storm frowned. "Uh, do they mean boy and girl dragons, or people?"

"People," Pit replied. "We only have four female dragons."

"Good point."

"Okay, let's go!" Nora shouted, her eyes blazing. "We dine on the blood of our enemies this morning!"

Freya groaned. _No one should even be alive this early in the morning. My partner is insane._

The group split into two teams once they got to the large field, which was currently an unbroken, thick expanse of snow. The boys went to the far end while Nora, the self-appointed leader of the girls, tried to rouse the sleepier members of her team.

"Okay, ladies and ladies' dragons! This snow battle will determine the honor of our gender until the next one! Are you ready?!"

The dragons were all looking confused. Ruby quickly explained: "This is a game where we throw snow at each other."

Storm tossed her head. "Oh, so that's why they wanted us up this early! They didn't want everyone walking on the snow before we could play in it."

Titan shifted nervously. "If anyone throws snow at Twiggy, be gentle."

Pyrrha heard her dragon's nervous warble and patted his head. "Don't worry, Titan. This will be all in good fun. We just need to not get carried away."

Specter couldn't be more excited. "I shall blanket all of them in alabaster radiance!"

Fang snorted. "Now you're just making words up."

"I am not! Nautilus has been helping me expand my vocabulary."

"Wow, I never thought you'd have something in common with Huo," Pit noted innocently.

Specter let out a superior sniff at the mere thought. "Please. I'm nothing like that brash lunatic."

Freya's head drooped forward as she tried to catch an extra wink of sleep before this stupidity started.

Across the field, Sun was riling up his team. "Okay, everyone! We're gonna take them down! No prisoners! Don't go easy on them, just because they're girls!"

Jaune coughed. "Considering the fact that they have Pyrrha, Nora, and Yang, going easy would be borderline suicidal."

Scarlet gulped. "Yeah, I'm a little scared."

"Oh, we'll be fine!" Sun said, waving a dismissive hand. "We have a secret weapon. Huo's the hottest dragon here, so he can stand in front of us and melt any snowballs that come our way!"

"Won't that only work if he's in our immediate vicinity at all times?" Ren asked.

"Yeah, seems like a cowardly strategy," Neptune noted. "What about the pincer tactic? Half of us goes one way, half goes the other."

"That kind of maneuver generally works better if there's cover to hide the fact that a pincer move is being used," Jaune pointed out.

"Why don't we just go free-for-all style?" Sage asked. "This is just for fun, after all."

"Our honor is at stake, Sage! We can't just-"

"Hey, losers!" Yang called over. "You gonna talk till the snow melts? You could just surrender now!"

"That sounds like the talk of someone who wants an excuse to give up!" Sun shouted back.

Scarlet coughed, scooting close to Sage. "If this gets too rough, I'm hiding behind you."

"I think you'll have to fight Zircon for that privilege," Sage muttered, glancing at his shaking dragon.

"Wh-What should I d-do?" Zircon whispered, eyes darting around frantically. He didn't like that Pit was on the other side of the field. He felt safer when Pit was close. Apparently, they were supposed to attack each other with snow. He didn't want to fight Pit!

"Hey, don't worry. It's just a game." Twiggy nudged his shoulder. "I'll stay with you."

"Th-Thanks…" Zircon scratched the frozen ground through the snow. He didn't necessarily feel _safer_ with Twiggy around, but he felt better overall. He wasn't sure why.

With a shout from Nora, the girls started to surge forward, signaling the beginning of the battle. From there, everything was wet, cold chaos.

Freya, jarred from her quick nap, stumbled forward, yelping as her face hit the snow. She shook her head, growling grouchily. _Fine! I'll get this over with, so I can go back to sleep sooner!_ With that decided, she ran across the field with a look of grim determination on her face.

Nora laughed. "That's my girl! Let's get 'em!"

Specter was plowing through the snow eagerly, letting out a series of high-pitched noises. _This is glorious! We must do this every morning!_

Weiss couldn't help but smile. Between the jarring coldness of the snow and her dragon's utter joy, it was impossible to feel tired anymore.

Twiggy was having the time of her life bouncing through the snow and trying to find Titan. She barked at Jaune, nudging him from the side.

Jaune yelped, almost falling over. "Easy, Twiggy," he laughed. "Save it for the girls!"

The two sides stopped a few yards away from each other and practically dove to the ground to grab and shape the snow. When the first snowball hit Jaune square in the chest, Nora let out a savage cry of "FIRST BLOOD!"

"Hey, I saw that!" Twiggy barreled forward, the point of the game finally clicking fully in her head as she scooped up some snow and hurled it at Nora, who yelped as her chest and midsection were suddenly dusted white.

"No you don't!" Freya barked, fully awake for a brief moment. Standing on her hind legs, she flapped once, sending her sister tumbling backwards into Neptune.

As poor Neptune fell into the snow, barely avoiding getting crushed by the horse-sized Twiggy, Nymph headbutted Freya, knocking the wind dragon off balance. Freya stayed on her side, tiredness suddenly returning as she closed her eyes. Nora let out a loud groan nearby.

Sun and Yang were in a heated personal battle, pelting each other with tightly-packed snowballs while dodging behind their fire dragons periodically. They were of the small, insane group of people who had no problem aiming for the face. (Though they were quick to make a scene if their own faces were hit.)

"Ha! Take that, you shirtless weirdo!" Yang shouted.

Sun opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted when Neptune called across the field.

"Sun, your coat had better be zipped over there!"

"Oh my god, Neptune! Not now!"

Yang snickered. "They are so married," she muttered to Fang.

Fang wasn't sure what "married" meant. He just found this whole situation hilarious. "Looking a bit sleepy, Huo!" he roared over Sun and Neptune's bickering.

Huo let out a puff of smoke as he snorted. "Come over here, and we'll see who's sleepy, you stripy prick!"

Fang smirked. "As you wish!" Spinning around, he lashed his tail against the ground, sending a blanket of snow over both Sun and Huo.

Huo 's scales heated up, melting the snow away as he glared at Fang with blazing eyes. "Oh, this will be fun," he growled, lunging at his rival.

Sun, who had started laughing hysterically when the snow covered him, immediately ran toward Yang. "That's it, Huo! Take them down!" He paused, suddenly remembering the ill-fated fight his dragon had had with Fang when they were young. "We're just playing, buddy!" he hurriedly added. "Don't hurt him."

Huo stopped short, rolling his eyes. _Right, right. Don't bite. Jaws are stronger now that I'm bigger. I got it._ He hated that he was repeating one of Nymph's lectures in his head, but thinking about her nagging voice was enough to snap him out of his blind rage. He didn't actually want to hurt any of the others, after all. Not even Fang. Taking a deep breath, he scooped up some snow with his paw and closed the distance between himself and Fang, shoving the snow in the other dragon's face.

Fang sputtered, tossing his head. "Why, you little-! Take this!" He jumped onto Huo's back, shoving his face into the snow. "Give up?"

"SCREW YOU!"

Sage and Jaune ended up in a fierce brawl with Weiss and Pyrrha. Poor Zircon hid behind Sage, ears twitching nervously. Twiggy darted from side to side, blocking any snow thrown at her friend while throwing some at her brother.

Titan found himself enjoying this game and bounded forward, tackling Twiggy and nipping playfully at her shoulder.

Specter whistled, entirely in his element as he whacked the snow with his tail. When a snowball flew toward him, he would snap it up in his jaws.

"Specter! Don't eat the snow!" Weiss scolded. "That's unsanitary!"

Nimbus and Storm, meanwhile, were making full use of their wind powers, flapping their wings and whipping up rival flurries of snow and frost. Storm gritted her teeth as Nimbus's larger wings pushed her back.

"I'll save you, Storm!" Ruby declared, running at Nimbus from the side and throwing a fresh snowball.

Nimbus spun around, trying to locate Ruby. He saw a blur running to the side. He stumbled forward, and his head suddenly hit something soft, which let out a yelp as it fell to the ground with a thump. He blinked, trying to focus, and saw the shape of Ruby lying on the ground, gasping for breath. His stomach twisted when she didn't get up right away. "Uh oh… Scarlet! Scarlet!"

Scarlet stopped throwing snow immediately at Nimbus's distressed bark. He ran over, kneeling at Ruby's side. "Ruby, you okay?"

Ruby groaned as she sat up, still trying to breathe properly. Nimbus had accidentally headbutted her, knocking the wind out of her completely. It didn't feel like anything was broken, thankfully.

Storm stared at Ruby, her heart sinking. Ruby wasn't breathing right. She wasn't getting up. Why wasn't she getting up?

Nimbus. Nimbus had hurt her.

Slowly, Storm turned toward Nimbus, her eyes narrowing. Her mind went blank and she lunged forward, shrieking a challenge.

In an instant, the snowball fight ended as teammates and dragons suddenly were scrambling to break up the fight. Nimbus was backing away, whimpering piteously while Storm fanned out her fins, showing her fangs and snapping at the air.

"I'm sorry!" Nimbus sobbed, shaking as blurs darted all around him. He couldn't focus on Storm. He couldn't see her face. All he could do was hear her shrieks. Was she going to kill him? "I didn't mean to!" he insisted.

Nymph rushed over, putting herself between Storm and Nimbus, thumping her tail threateningly against the ground. "Don't make me hurt you, Storm," she warned.

Huo hissed, his scales burning as he started to circle around, ready to pounce from the side if he had to.

Zircon crouched down, covering his eyes with his paws. "P-P-Please stop!"

It was Pit who calmed Storm down, padding over and resting his large head on her back. "Easy, now," he muttered. "Nimbus didn't do it on purpose. Breathe."

Storm struggled, which only made Pit press down more. Why was she being stopped? She had to protect Ruby! Ruby was hurt! She was…

It was no good. Storm couldn't move. Her alpha wasn't going to let her move.

After a moment, she let out a sigh, giving in to Pit's superior strength. As she did, she felt some lucidity creeping back in. With that came a sudden, hot flush of shame.

"Wh…Why did I do that?" she whispered, staring at Nimbus, hating the fear in his googly eyes. Her fins flattened against her head as she looked at Pit. "Pit, what happened?"

Pit shook his head. He didn't have an answer. Truthfully, he was trying not to show how disturbed he was. _It's like she turned into a wild animal!_

At that moment, Ruby managed to get to her feet and stumble over to her dragon. "It's okay, girl," she gasped, hugging her tightly. "I'm fine. Just got winded. It's okay."

Storm wrapped her wing around Ruby, starting to shake a little as the realization of what she had almost done sank in even deeper.

"I, uh, think the snowball fight's over," Jaune said, putting a hand on Twiggy, who was shifting nervously.

"I agree." Pyrrha nodded once, leading a silent Titan toward his stall.

The others calmed down their dragons and led them back in subdued silence, only to stop short when they saw Doctor Oobleck and Gust standing at the edge of the field. Oobleck took a swig out of a large thermos as he walked over. "Well, now. Got a little spirited, did we?"

"Sorry, sir!" Ruby said immediately. "We thought a snowball fight would be fun, but things just…"

"Got out of hand?" Oobleck finished, raising an eyebrow. "Yes, yes. That tends to happen when you're dealing with elephant-sized elementals. Roughhousing is generally not an advisable pursuit, at least not between dragons and Riders. Dragons and dragons, yes. People and people, yes. Keep it that way in the future."

"Yes, sir," they all muttered.

Storm, meanwhile, was pleading with Gust. "I'm so sorry!" she whimpered, bowing her head and suppressing a sob. "I don't know why I attacked Nimbus like that!"

"I do," Gust said, nodding knowledgably. "I certainly do. It's a well-known fact that the mind of a dragon will lose a great deal of sanity in response to seeing their Rider in distress. Loss of control is common, especially for dragonets." She fixed Storm with a stern look. "Controlling oneself in the face of such situations is what we will be learning in the coming semester, among other things."

"Good!" Storm said, her voice still shrill and desperate. "I don't want to hurt anyone!"

"No dragon ever does," Gust said, her voice becoming gentler. She turned to Nimbus, who was still trembling. "Don't be afraid of Storm. She's still your friend. She struggles with her nature, as do we all."

Nimbus nodded shakily. "O-Okay." He looked at Storm, whose blue eyes had regained that familiar, non-threatening look. "I really am sorry, Storm," he warbled.

Storm padded over, lightly nuzzling his cheek. "I'm sorry too. I won't attack you ever, ever again, Nimbus. I promise!"

Oobleck watched the exchange with a smile. "Talked some sense into them, did you?" he muttered fondly to Gust. "Truly, it would be a wondrous thing if we could understand the language of dragons." He nodded to the students. "Dry off your dragons, and go rest. I do believe the kitchens have been fully-stocked with everything needed to make hot chocolate."

"That sounds perfect!" Ruby sighed. She patted Storm's shoulder, glad to see her dragon in better spirits.

Before they reached the stalls, Ao Guang trotted over to Storm and touched her side with his wing. "Hey. You okay?"

Storm managed to smile, her face warming a little at Guang's closeness. "I'm better now."

"That's good!" Guang chirped. "I'm gonna think of a new game, one we can all play without getting hurt. That's a good idea, don't you think?"

"Definitely!" Storm agreed.

"Cool! Let me know if you think of anything fun!" Guang bounded back over to Ren, nudging his partner cheerfully before padding into his stall, wholly content that everything was okay again.

Less convinced was Zircon, who kept his gaze fixed on the ground the entire walk to the stalls. _I didn't try to protect Nimbus,_ he thought mournfully. _Nymph and Huo ran over right away, but I just hid. I'm nothing but a worthless coward._ He had always rationalized that his fear was something that would one day keep everyone safe, but what good was caution if he couldn't even stand up for his own brother?

Sage noticed his dragon's downcast look and scratched his neck. "It's okay," he soothed. "No one's fighting anymore. Everything's fine. It won't happen again."

Zircon nuzzled Sage's arm, feeling a surge of love as his partner tried to comfort him. _I'll protect you, Sage,_ he vowed silently. _I'll try to learn to be brave for you, even if I can't be brave for anyone else._ He entered his stall, curling up on his bed of hay and closing his eyes. He was glad to be within the walls again. There was no risk of looking at the disapproving expression that was probably on Nymph's face right now.

The teams bedded their dragons, leaving extra treats in the food bowls, giving varying degrees of comfort, before eventually coming together outside the stalls and heading inside. Doctor Oobleck was right: It was time to rest.

…..

After taking hot showers and changing into dry clothes, the twelve Riders met in the common area, where Ren quickly set about making hot chocolate for everyone.

"Ooh, can you put some vanilla in mine?" Scarlet called over.

"Will do."

Ruby sighed, throwing herself onto one of the armchairs, glad that it was still early enough that none of the other students were using the common area yet. "I hope our dragons will be okay."

"Nimbus seemed fine when I put him in his stall," Scarlet noted. "I think whatever Gust told him calmed him down."

"I'll check on Zircon later," Sage said. "I think seeing a fight between our dragons distressed him a bit."

"It's a shame that snowball fights are too dangerous," Weiss sighed. "Specter was having a wonderful time."

"You can always throw snowballs at him as a one-on-one thing," Ruby suggested.

"True. I may do that. Oh, Ren! Is there any peppermint over there?"

"Let me check…" Ren muttered, rifling through the cabinets.

"ACHOO!"

Everyone turned as Sun let out a loud sneeze. Neptune cocked an eyebrow. "Well, well. Could it be that justice is finally being served to a certain coat-shunning ruffian?"

"Ruffian?" Sun snorted. "Weiss, stop screwing up my best friend's vocabulary!" He sniffed loudly. "Anyway, I'm fine."

"Uh huh." Neptune looked doubtfully at Sun's tee-shirt. "Remind me to get you some warmer pajamas for Yule."

"Just as long as they aren't what Jaune's wearing," Sun insisted, glancing at his friend's incredibly-lame bunny onesie.

"Aw, come on!" Jaune protested. "Onsies and slippers are literally the best thing in the winter time! They are super warm! You basically become a human electric blanket."

"Ooh, let me see!" Nora zipped over, hugging Jaune. Her eyes widened. "Omigosh, they're so soft!" She squeezed her leader tightly. "I might actually fall asleep here."

Jaune snickered, then noticed Ren giving him a sideways look. "Hey, I didn't say I was volunteering to be a human blanket," he joked, shoving Nora away playfully.

"Ugh, fine." Nora rolled her eyes. "Ren, I'm getting you warm pajamas and making you my personal heater! It'll be way better than you sleeping in your freaking clothes!"

Ren let out a grunt. Jaune noticed with a slight smirk that he wasn't at all protesting the idea. Then again, it wasn't exactly a secret that Nora snuck into her best friend's bed whenever she had nightmares. (Or whenever she claimed to have had a nightmare.)

The cocoa was eventually finished, and the group sat around the common area, some on couches, some on armchairs, some sprawled on the floor, sipping contentedly. Ruby ended up snuggling with Yang on one of the chairs. Team JNPR took one of the couches, where Nora slumped drowsily against Ren. Pyrrha sat close to Jaune, hesitantly resting her head on his shoulder, smiling when he shifted closer and yawned. Sun was on the floor, leaning against an armchair that held Blake. Neptune sat nearby, wanting to scoot closer, but ultimately deciding against it. Scarlet unabashedly fell asleep on Sage's lap. Weiss sat in a lone chair and started cleaning as soon as she finished her cocoa, insisting that Ren stay put.

Ruby yawned, putting her empty cup on a nearby table and licking the chocolate mustache from her lip. "Four more days till Yule…" she murmured.

"Yep." Yang ruffled her hair gently. "You excited?"

"Mm hm. Uncle Qrow's gonna be here. Either tomorrow or the day after. That's what Dad said." She closed her eyes, slumping against her sister. "I can't wait…"

The friends parted ways eventually, Team SSSN going to their dorm room for some extra sleep. Ruby, Yang, and Jaune, of course, had family time planned, and were quick to drag their teammates along once they roused themselves. Of course, no one had any complaints about that.

 **Things went a little south, didn't they? This is totally not a sign of things to come. Absolutely not. Nope.**

 **I hope you all have a happy Thanksgiving. Eat lots, and then eat even more! It's literally the holiday for it. And don't get trampled on Black Friday. Better yet, don't go out on Black Friday. Wait till Cyber Monday. That's what I'm gonna do!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	53. Hiatus

**Greetings, everyone. As you can see, this isn't a new chapter. It's an unfortunate but necessary announcement: I need to take a leave of absence from Fanfiction.**

 **I don't want to go into too much detail, but my mental state has not been great lately. My two jobs, the knowledge that I'm going to be stuck where I am for a long time despite all I'm doing, and the stress of having to post chapters every week have melded together until it's like a constant weight on my chest, making me panicky and exhausted at the same time. I need a break in order to pull myself together and figure things out concerning how I'm going to proceed with my writing and my life in general.**

 **Also, my backlog is dry, and I'm scrambling to post updates at the moment. I know that this will cause the quality to suffer, and that's the last thing I want. "Wings of Dust" is going to be a long-ass fic with a lot of plot points, and I want to make sure those are mapped out and ready. I don't want to just keep posting filler chapters. I've satisfied the need for character interaction. I want to get into the thick of things plot-wise, but I can't if I'm rushing to finish it every week. Part of this hiatus will be spent rebuilding the backlog and making sure that the chapters are as high-quality as this fic deserves.**

 **This isn't me quitting! I'm not leaving permanently, nor is this fic going to be discontinued. However, it may be a while before you hear from me again. I hope to be active again by February, but I won't promise anything at the moment. What I will promise is that you will get consistent, quality content once I do come back.**

 **I will be posting "Five Summers" every other Thursday as scheduled, since my patrons have already seen the whole thing and it's long past due that you guys see the rest of it.**

 **Please don't post reviews asking when I'll be back or complaining about the hiatus. And don't send messages of that nature. I'll be back when I'm ready, and these fics will be right with me. Please be patient. Remember, I'm NOT discontinuing this.**

 **Until I write for you again, peace out.**


	54. Late Arrival

**RAWR! Look who's back with your favorite Tuesday dosage of dragons! I really have been away from these for too long. The plot is going to get more intense from here, so get ready!**

 **And I have a dragon recommendation for you. I have discovered the literal cutest anime ever:** _ **How to Keep a Mummy**_ **. It's about four teens who end up adopting four mini monsters: a mummy, an oni, a dragon, and a baku. Every episode is just saturated with cuteness, and Mii-kun is my child, and the dragon is a precious big brother character, and you need to just watch it, okay?**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

It was the day before Yule Eve, and the Xiao Long family was spending some quality time with each other and their dragons. Zwei was playing with Fang, who was still trying to figure out exactly what this weird animal was. Ruby was leaning against Tempest's side, staring glumly at the sky as Storm nuzzled her shoulder and let out a series of concerned chirps.

"Come on, sis," Yang urged, noticing Ruby's downcast look. "You know how Uncle Qrow's missions can get."

"I know," Ruby sighed. "I just really miss him." She smiled a little when Storm nudged her arm. "Hey, girl. I'm okay."

Taiyang glanced at his Scroll, hoping vainly that he'd see a text from Qrow explaining why he was late. No such luck. _He'd better not be drunk under a table somewhere,_ he thought bitterly, then felt a flush of shame. _No. He wouldn't do that. Not when his family's expecting him._ That was one thing he could say for Qrow: No matter how much of a drunken idiot he was, he always put family first.

Then again, Taiyang would have preferred to hear that Qrow was drunk somewhere, rather than in danger on whatever mission he was currently on. _I'll ask Ozpin,_ he decided. _He'll probably know more._

Storm licked Ruby's cheek, then looked up at Tempest. "Who's Uncle Qrow?"

"Another member of the family," Tempest said, deciding against talking about the whole complex history of said family. "He's the Rider of our brother Salty."

"Is he the water dragon?" Storm asked.

"That's right."

Fang turned his attention away from Zwei. "Who's the fire dragon? I want to meet them!"

Tempest and Quake exchanged an uneasy glance. "Our sister…" Quake said slowly. "Is on a mission very far away. We won't be able to see her for a long time."

Storm warbled sympathetically. "That must be sad. Fang, Specter, and Pit aren't my brothers, but I'd hate to be away from them."

"They're still your family," Quake said, noticing the slight gentling of Fang's expression in response to Storm's words. "Even without the blood bond of siblings, you're family."

"What's a blood bond?" Fang asked.

"It's an inner knowledge of our kin," Quake explained. "Wild dragons use it to know who to mate with. It also keeps us from hurting our kin. No sane dragon will cause true harm to their blood relatives, especially their brother or sister."

Storm sighed, scuffing her front paw. "I wish I had that with Nimbus."

Fang nudged her shoulder. "Hey, that wasn't your fault."

Tempest nodded, her blue eyes clouding as she thought back. "I remember when Summer died. I nearly lost my mind. If Taiyang and Quake hadn't called me back, hadn't reminded me that Ruby and Yang needed me…" She shook her head. "I don't know what I would have done. Seeing a Rider hurt causes a degree of madness, which can be deadly, even if it's a lesser version of the madness caused when a Rider is killed."

Storm nuzzled the older dragon's shoulder. "I know. Nimbus forgave me. I still feel bad, though."

"That just means you're less likely to do it again," Quake soothed.

"Well," Taiyang spoke up. "Even if Qrow doesn't show up, I hope you girls are still up for going to look at the windows downtown."

Ruby perked up. "Oh, definitely! We can't miss that! It's tradition!" She paused before asking: "Can Blake and Weiss come with us?"

"Absolutely!" Taiyang exclaimed immediately. "I was gonna invite them anyway! You'd better tell them to get ready. We'll head down at five."

Ruby already had her Scroll out, and was texting excitedly.

"Hey, what about Sun, Sage, Scarlet, and Neptune?" Yang realized. "None of them are gonna have family here for Yule."

Taiyang spread his hands out. "The more the merrier! Question: Are any of these boys...piquing my girls' interests?" He raised an eyebrow.

" _Daaaaad!"_ Ruby groaned, rolling her eyes.

"They're just friends, Dad," Yang said with a laugh. "Honestly, most of us are betting that they're gonna end up with each other by the end of the year. I mean, Neptune's been pining for Sun since the beginning of the semester, and Scarlet and Sage are basically married."

"They just don't know it yet?" Taiyang guessed, thinking back fondly to his own teenage years.

"Exactly."

As Ruby and Yang headed back to the stalls, they noticed their dragons stiffening. They turned to see Team CRDL walking nearby, and also grew tense.

The bully team didn't look in their direction. They seemed totally focused on exercising their dragons. As they walked across the field, Ruby noticed a very dejected-looking Mudslide trudging through the snow between Tornado and Tank. Tank had a wing draped over his sister, and the steam coming from his scales showed that he was heating himself up to make her more comfortable.

 _At least someone's looking after her,_ Ruby thought.

At five, Teams RWBY and SSSN met up and got on the next airship downtown with Taiyang. Unfortunately, the part of Vale they were going to was too small even for the dragonets to be comfortable. Still, it was nice to have a night out with just the Riders now that the dragonets' stall anxiety had disappeared.

"This is gonna be awesome!" Sun said, leaning back on one of the comfy seats. "I'm gonna eat all the food! Everyone knows Yule cakes and candies are the best."

"We'll have to keep an eye out for those candied chestnuts you like so much," Neptune noted.

"Dust yes!"

Zwei was bounding in circles around the ship, loving that he was allowed to go for a ride without being in a suitcase. When Weiss held out her hand, he immediately trotted over and sat down at her feet, panting as she eagerly petted him.

"Oh, you're such a sweetie! Yes, you are!" Weiss cooed.

"Would you look at that! All it took to thaw the Ice Queen was a dog!" Sun laughed.

Weiss glared. "Mister Xiao Long, does Zwei know the command 'Sic him?'"

"I'm afraid not, kiddo," Taiyang laughed.

Even the landing platform was surrounded by rainbow, twinkling lights, and it only got better as the group walked down the street. Lights were wrapped around every pole, turning them into pillars of shimmering radiance. Every other post was topped with a set of lights in the shape of a snowflake, something that made Weiss smile. Each shop window was decorated for the season, from the toy shops with their working toy trains and realistic toy cities, to the coffee shops with their plastic trees clad with handmade ornaments and holiday sketches by local artists. Even the hardware store at the corner had created a scene straight from Yule folklore, with a figure representing Gaia made of colored pipes and holly lying on her back in her deep, yearly slumber. A horse and carriage trotted by, all dolled up in fake holly and ivy.

And the smells! It was like being hit in the face with a mallet of cinnamon, gingerbread, and chocolate fumes. Besides the coffee houses and sweet shops, there were several portable stands run by dedicated people who were more than willing to brave the cold in order to get business from the food-craving passerby. After only a minute, everyone's mouths were watering.

Taiyang grinned as he noticed the hungry looks on the kids' faces. "Okay, here's the deal: I'll get us all gingerbread from our favorite stand, but you're on your own for anything else."

Everyone agreed. "Favorite stand?" Blake asked. "Sounds like you're an expert."

"Of course! We come here every year," Taiyang said, leading them confidently to a stand that had been set up in the lawn by the library. "Hey, Joe!" he greeted. "Give us two boxes this time."

Joe, a chubby, red-cheeked man with a bright smile, let out a booming laugh. "Picked up some strays, did you?" He started packing up two medium-sized boxes with fresh, steaming gingerbread.

"Watch it! These are all up and coming Dragon Riders."

"Ah." Joe nodded sagely. "In that case, take some cocoa on the house." He placed the boxes on the counter and set about filling up nine cups.

"Thank you, Joe!" Ruby chirped.

"Is that Ruby? Sweet Dust, you get taller every year!"

"She'll never be taller than me, though," Yang said, resting her arm on her sister's head, snickering when this prompted Ruby to start angrily swatting at her side.

They sat down on a nearby picnic table, admiring the lights on the towering pine tree that stood by the library. Upon closer inspection, they saw a cluster of paper ornaments made by the local schoolchildren. They walked around it, munching on their warm gingerbread and sipping some pretty decent cocoa.

"You know," Scarlet noted. "I hate ginger on its own. Put it in bread and cookies, though, and it becomes amazing!" He looked around eagerly. "Oooh, everything is so pretty! Why can't it be like this all the time?"

"It wouldn't be as special if it was like this all the time," Sage pointed out.

"Not true! I'd never get tired of it!" Scarlet took a contented sip of cocoa.

Sage ruffled his hair affectionately. "Well, you're pretty special yourself."

Scarlet's cheeks flushed in a way he knew had nothing to do with the cold. He leaned happily against his friend's side. Over the past few months, he had gotten more and more physically close to Sage. The lack of complaint from his best friend made him wonder if maybe there was something more to this. He found himself hoping that there was.

Blake was staring up at the tree, adjusting her hood and scarf before taking another swig of cocoa. The cold was still weird to her, even after being in Vale for over a year. She had to admit that the feeling of drinking a hot beverage while out in the cold was quite soothing. She wished she had a cup of her favorite tea handy. She jumped when a hand touched her shoulder.

"Having a good time?" Taiyang asked, smiling gently.

Blake returned the smile gladly. "Yes. Thank you for inviting us."

"Oh, don't worry about it! All of my daughters' friends are part of the family, as far as I'm concerned." Taiyang patted her back lightly. "I know it can be hard being away from your own family during the holidays."

"Yeah," Blake agreed, noticing with relief that Taiyang didn't seem to be planning on asking why her family wasn't there. He was excitable and happy, but knew when not to pry. She liked that. _He and Dad would get along well,_ she found herself thinking with a pang of sadness.

Weiss walked over with Zwei trotting at her heels. "Sir, Zwei ate some gingerbread that fell in the snow. Will he be okay?"

"Totally," Taiyang said, not showing any real concern. "I mean, he once managed to steal an entire dark chocolate bar from me without getting sick. I swear, that dog has a stomach of steel."

Zwei yipped cheerfully, wagging his short tail.

After finishing their snacks, the nine walked down the street, stopping at each window. Scarlet had to be dragged away from a display of ornaments done by a shop that sold expensive Atlesian crystal.

"It'll add such a touch of elegance to the room!" he insisted.

"No, Scarlet," Sage said firmly. "Just one of those costs half of our tuition!"

Neptune slipped away at one point, only to come back with a large, fragrant paper bag. "Hey, Sun. Look what I found." He held out the bag, which was filled with steaming candied chestnuts.

Sun's eyes lit up. "Thanks, dude! You're awesome!" He plunged his hand in and popped three into his mouth, yelping in pain as the hot sugar stuck to his mouth.

Neptune groaned. "For the love of Dust! You do that every year!"

"Mmph. Nuh mah faul!" Sun protested, trying to cool his mouth without spitting out the chestnuts. "They thso gud!"

"You need tastebuds to enjoy them, you know," Neptune said dryly, popping one into his mouth after blowing on it first. The familiar texture of crunchy, cooked nuts coated with the hard, sticky candy stuck to his teeth. He savored the sweet, nutty, slightly smoky flavor while Sun managed to swallow his own, only to reach for the bag again. "Oh, no you don't!" Neptune snapped. "You're waiting for them to cool, unless you want me to blow on them for you, since you clearly aren't going to do that yourself."

Sun's eyes glinted as the perfect dirty joke came to mind. "So…"

Neptune realized his mistake immediately and facepalmed. "Sun, no."

"You're saying you want to blow my-"

"Sun, I swear I'll eat these all by myself if you finish that sentence!" Neptune snapped.

Sun pouted. "You're no fun."

"Hey, I bought you a giant bag of chestnuts. You have zero complaining rights."

"Fair enough." Sun blew loudly on one of the chestnuts under Neptune's watchful eye before popping the treat into his mouth.

Team RWBY was staring into one of the many toy shop windows, which had a snowy landscape set up with tiny, lit up houses, and a train running through a tunnel in one of the mountains. In the foreground, tiny dragon and human figurines fought against model Grimm, keeping the tiny town safe.

Blake's eyes were wide as she looked at the moving train and the intricate detail of the houses, which were all unique in their design. A tiny wreath hung over one of the miniscule doorways, and Blake could count individual fake pine needles when she squinted. "Amazing craftsmanship," she muttered.

"Have you seen windows like these before?" Ruby asked.

"No. I mean, there were toymakers and carvers back home, but detailed pieces like these are rare." Blake looked around, shaking her head slowly. "The variety these large cities have… It's amazing."

"I'll have to take you to Atlas for Yule sometime," Weiss remarked. "There's one store that has tiny mechanical dragons that fly around."

Ruby gasped. "I heard of those! I want one so bad!"

Taiyang smiled secretly to himself, thinking of the various presents he had bought for his girls. He couldn't wait to see their faces on Yule.

As they reached the end of the street, Taiyang's Scroll started to buzz. He picked it up, glancing at it in case it was Qrow, but his gaze sharpened when he realized it was Ozpin's number. He answered immediately. "Yes, sir?"

The others stopped, watching as Taiyang's face paled and a stern expression replaced his easy smile. After a moment, he said: "Understood. We're on our way," and hung up.

"What is it, Dad?" Ruby asked.

"Uncle Qrow is here," Taiyang said, pulling up the airship schedule on his Scroll. "They found him and Salty on the outskirts of Vale. They're both alive," he added quickly at Ruby and Yang's stricken looks.

"Was it Grimm?" Blake asked. "There shouldn't be that many around during the holidays."

"Oh, you'd be surprised," Taiyang muttered. "Okay, we can make the next ship if we run. Sorry to cut this short."

"Dude, it's no problem!" Sun insisted. "Let's go!"

They ended up arriving at Beacon before the dragon carrier, which was much slower and more cumbersome. When it landed near the guest stalls, Ruby rushed to the doors, watching anxiously. The doors hissed open, revealing a beaten and bloody cerulean water dragon. He warbled weakly when he saw Ruby, but didn't say anything else as he limped off the ship and into the empty stall nearby. He looked over his shoulder, whimpering.

As if on cue, Qrow was brought out on a stretcher, loudly complaining that he was perfectly capable of walking.

Taiyang let out a sigh of relief. "If he can complain, he's probably fine." He went to Tempest and Quake's stalls, unlocking the doors to let the dragons see their brother.

Tempest hurried to Salty's side. "Oh my goodness! What happened to you?"

Quake snarled. "Did the Grimm ambush you?"

"Not Grimm…" Salty panted. "Dragons… Many dragons… Two fire dragons at the lead… Barely was able to…" Groaning, he fell onto his side.

"Move! Out of the way!" Ozpin's commanding voice rang out as he and Glynda made their way to the stall. Glynda immediately set about examining Salty's wounds and bandaging what she could. "Qrow, if you don't let these nice people take you to the infirmary, I'll knock you out myself!"

Qrow snorted. "Good to see you too, Oz." He noticed his family for the first time and grinned wryly. "Hey, guys. Sorry I'm late!"

Ruby sniffled, wiping her eyes. "It's okay, Uncle Qrow. Just get better."

"I'm fine. I can walk right now!" He tried to sit up.

"Qrow, I got you that aged brandy you like for Yule. A whole bottle," Taiyang spoke up. "You cooperate with the doctors, or I'm pouring it all down the drain."

Qrow's eyes widened and he immediately dropped back. "Don't even joke like that, Tai…" he growled. In the end, he let himself be taken to the infirmary without protest.

…..

After an hour, Qrow was stabilized, and Salty was on the mend. At this point, Ozpin and Glynda gently shooed the Xiao Longs from the room so that they could talk to their friend alone.

"What happened, Qrow?" Ozpin asked. "I got your report on what Raven told you. Then, nothing."

Qrow let out a dusty laugh. "Heh… Lot more than nothing happened after that…" He turned his head to the side, letting out a loud cough. "I tried following her and Phoenix. Thought maybe if I could track down where she and her rogues were hiding, I'd get a better idea on who they're working with."

Glynda rolled her eyes. "You should have known better than to try something like that alone!"

"I figured she wouldn't hurt me. And I was right. _She_ didn't do anything." Qrow sat upright with a groan. "I'm fine," he growled when Glynda tried to push him back. "There was a group of Riders, Oz. All rogues. I'd never seen them before. Their leader…I thought it was Raven at first, but then I saw the dragon's eyes were blue… They attacked, and…Salty just froze up. I don't know why. They brought us both down, then left. I wanted to follow, but…"

"Salty wouldn't," Glynda finished. "He was always the smarter one between the two of you."

"Yeah," Qrow admitted. "We barely made it to the edge of town before he couldn't move anymore… Is he really okay?"

"I wouldn't lie to you, Qrow," Glynda assured him. "Not about your dragon."

"Good," Qrow sighed. "He deserves a rest."

"You both do," Ozpin said sternly. "While you're here, I want you to think only of your family and the holidays. After Yule, we'll talk about what to do next." He touched Qrow's shoulder. "You've done well, my friend."

Qrow grinned. "I always do."

…..

"What happened, Salty?" Tempest asked gently. She was lying at her brother's side, one large wing covering his back. Quake sat nearby, and Ignis was poking his head out of his stall. Ragnar and Nautilus listened silently, waiting for the water dragon to speak.

"We…were trying to follow Phoenix," Salty muttered. His eyelids were heavy, but he forced himself to stay awake just a little longer. "She's involved with the brood thefts. We wanted to see if we could find the others."

"Phoenix did this to you?!" Tempest gasped.

"She couldn't!" Quake growled.

"No. Not Phoenix. Others." Salty took a deep breath. "There was a group of them. Their leader was a gold and black fire dragon. When they got closer, she said to surrender. If I didn't fight back, they'd just beat us up as a warning. If I fought back, she'd be ordered to kill me. They didn't want to kill us. Raven and Phoenix are their allies, so they didn't want to make them angry."

"So, you just let them beat you up?" Ignis asked.

"I had no choice!" Salty snapped. "We were outnumbered. I couldn't let them kill Qrow!"

"Of course not," Tempest soothed. "You did very well, brother."

Quake huffed, glaring at the sky. "If only we knew exactly what our sister is up to."

"She said that these people are trying to make things better for all dragons." Salty shook his head. "But I can't believe that."

"Maybe she does," Tempest suggested. "Especially if Raven believes the same thing."

"Tell us everything Phoenix told you," Ragnar urged gently. "Leave nothing out."

Taking a deep breath, Salty recounted what Phoenix had said about the Council, about the rogues stealing eggs so that they would have dragons to fight with, and her statement that Salty and Qrow would have a place with these people if they "picked the right side."

Nautilus growled, shaking his head. "I don't like this at all."

"I never much liked the Council," Ragnar admitted. "But at least they have a code that they stick to. These lawless rebels are clearly capable of anything. We'll have to be on our guard. They may try to attack the dragonries if they get strong enough."

Tempest hissed, fanning out her fins. "If they touch Ruby or Yang, I'll-"

"Peace, young one," Ragnar rumbled. "Those children are strong and smart, and Storm and Fang are two truly fine examples of their breeds."

"Besides," Nautilus snarled. "Any invader would have to kill every professor and every professor's dragon before laying a single claw on our students." He thumped his tail on the frozen ground for emphasis, flattening his fins and letting out a growl. "And that is no easy task."

Ragnar turned back to Salty to ask him another question, but the water dragon had finally passed out. Bowing his head respectfully, he turned and flew away, Nautilus close behind him.

Tempest warbled softly. "I don't like this, Quake."

Quake nodded, digging his claws into the ground. "None of us do."

The other dragons in the area muttered nervously amongst themselves throughout the night. No one slept easy.

 **I should probably warn you now that a good number of future chapters are going to end on a downer note. It wasn't my intention, but things are getting darker in the more recent chapters. Just a heads up.**

 **Man, it's good to be back! Anyway, if you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	55. A Chill in the Air

**Rawr, everyone! Today is the last day of the Week of Solora's Return, and you get another Dragon Tuesday in one week! Don't expect this every week, though. I'm only doing the double updates for "Once in a Shattered Moon" because the backlog is totally done.**

 **Enjoy!**

Yule Eve was the following morning, and Qrow was allowed to walk around under the close supervision of Taiyang. He grumbled loudly about not needing crutches, but didn't actually toss them aside, as he frequently threatened to do.

Ruby stayed by his side every minute, begging to know details about his mission. "Come on, Uncle Qrow! You can tell me! We're all Dragon Riders here!"

Qrow chuckled, ruffling her hair. "Easy, kiddo. You're not quite old enough to hear all the top-secret goods."

"Am too!" Ruby pouted, folding her arms.

"Hey, don't give me the look!" Qrow said, turning away with a huff. "That's not fair."

Ruby tried running to Qrow's other side, still pouting, and was rewarded with a hand to the face. "Hey!"

"Gotcha!" Qrow snickered. "There is good news: Your Yule presents didn't get destroyed during that fight we got into. I got you the good stuff, too."

"Uh, you don't mean whiskey, right?" Ruby said doubtfully.

"Come on, Ruby," Yang snorted. "You think Dad would let Qrow live if he did that?"

"I promise you I wouldn't," Taiyang piped up. "Slow down, Qrow! Don't strain yourself."

"Ugh… I'd say you're just like my mom, but I wouldn't know anything about that," Qrow grumbled, though he did slow his pace.

"Do you wanna meet Storm?" Ruby asked, bouncing up and down. "She's so awesome!"

"Hell yeah! Let's go see if Salty's feeling up to it. He got the worst of it last night." Qrow grimaced, feeling a familiar sense of guilt as he wondered what he could have done differently to protect his dragon.

When they got to the stalls, Salty was already awake and warbling eagerly for Qrow. "Rrrow," he purred, nuzzling his partner as gently as he could, glad to see him up and walking already. He turned toward the rest of the family, his heart as light as air for a moment as he took in the familiar faces. "Tai! Ang! Rrroo!" The girls had grown so much!

Ruby ran over and carefully hugged the water dragon. "Hi, Salty! I'm so glad you're okay. Do you want to meet our dragons?"

Salty bobbed his head. He had been looking forward to meeting the new dragonets.

"I was hoping to meet the ice dragon too," Qrow admitted. "Where are your teammates?"

"Oh, Blake's hanging out with Sun and Neptune today," Yang said.

"And Weiss is meeting with her sister," Ruby chirped. "They haven't seen each other in person in forever, so we're letting them get caught up one-on-one."

Both Qrow and Salty let out long, simultaneous groans. "Tell me the Ice Queen isn't sitting with us on Yule…"

"Tell me that frosty prick won't be in the stall next to mine…"

Taiyang snickered, though his eyes were stern. "Yes, she will. You'd better be on your best…" He paused, then groaned. "Actually, we might be doomed no matter what."

Tempest and Quake, meanwhile, were both snorting with laughter under their wings.

"You two wait here," Ruby said. "We'll go get Storm and Fang!" She and Yang ran off toward the dragonet stalls.

Once they were out of earshot, Taiyang turned to Qrow. "I know a lot of what happened is confidential, but-"

"She's involved, Tai," Qrow said, shaking his head regretfully. "I'm sorry."

Taiyang's shoulders slumped. "You talked to her, then."

"She hasn't asked about you, so don't bother asking if she did."

"I know that!" Taiyang snapped, his eyes blazing with anger and a heated mixture of regret, past love, and searing hatred. "I stopped expecting anything from _her_ a long time ago. Just tell me she's not the one who hurt you."

"No, but she's with the people who did." Qrow put a hand on Taiyang's shoulder. "There's a shitstorm coming, Tai. It's not gonna be pretty when it hits."

Taiyang placed a hand over Qrow's and managed to crack a smile. "Has there ever been a pretty shitstorm?"

Qrow burst out laughing, then put his free hand to his bandaged side, grimacing. This caused both of his crutches to fall to the ground with a clatter. "Ugh… This sucks…"

Salty warbled softly, taking a step closer, ready to let his Rider lean on him if necessary. "Rrrow? Gud?"

"I'm okay, buddy," Qrow assured him as Taiyang hurriedly picked up his crutches. "We've been through worse."

Salty tossed his head. That was definitely true.

When Ruby and Yang returned, their dragons immediately bounded over to Salty, eyes wide and inquisitive.

"Omigosh, are you okay?" Storm whimpered when she saw his injuries.

"What did you fight to get those?" Fang asked, his tone more admiring than anything.

Salty chuckled. "You must be Storm and Fang. I'm Salty. Nice to meet you." He turned to Storm. "I'm fine. It's just a few scratches. Nothing to worry about. As for who I was fighting…" He heaved a sigh as he looked at Fang. "I was battling other dragons."

Fang's green eyes widened. "How many?"

"At least a dozen. Two fire dragons were in the lead."

"Wow!" Fang's tail swished excitedly. "Will I be able to fight off a dozen dragons when I'm older?"

"I didn't fight them off," Salty said, his eyes flashing. "I was lucky to escape with my life. You'll need to be cautious once your battles begin. Understand?"

Fang nodded, though he couldn't stop imagining this scarred water dragon facing an entire flight of rogue dragons alone. It was a pretty amazing image.

 _He'll learn soon enough,_ Salty thought sadly. "So, how are your lessons?"

"The wind dragons are flying now!" Storm chirped. "Nimbus is the best in our class. His wings are huge, but he can't see very well."

"Really?" Salty tilted his head. "How does Ozpin hide that?"

"Not sure," Storm admitted. "I mean, most of the dragons have something to deal with, so maybe he's used to hiding stuff."

"I see…" Salty's fins flattened. That didn't sound good at all. He wondered if Qrow knew. _Probably. Ozpin tells him basically everything he knows, after all. At least…everything we know he knows… I'll ask Ragnar later._

"Okay, Salt. Stop hogging." Qrow limped over to Storm and Fang. "Heya, there. I'm Ruby and Yang's uncle." He held out his hand for them to sniff, smiling when Storm immediately licked his palm. "Friendly, aren't you?" He glanced at Fang. "And what about you? Giving Yang a good bit of trouble?"

"He's such a little shit," Yang affirmed.

Fang growled, sticking out his tongue.

"Language, Yang!" Taiyang scolded.

"Daaaaaad!"

Fang ducked his head and let out a huff of laughter. "Yeah, Yang. Language! Don't be like Huo!"

"Oh, shut up, Fang!" Yang rolled her eyes at her dragon's amused huffs and yips.

Qrow snickered. "These are some good dragons. You'll be killing Grimm like maniacs with these two. Lemme know when I get to meet the others."

"Everyone's letting their dragons out after breakfast tomorrow, so you'll definitely get to see all of them then," Ruby said, bouncing up and down. "It's gonna be so awesome!"

"I remember when we did that," Taiyang noted. "Had to be careful of the scuffles, especially at this age. A fight could be deadly with how big their fangs and claws are now. Do any of your dragons have rivals they might fight with?"

"Well, Fang and Huo have some tension," Yang said. "And most of the dragons on our teams hate Team CRDL's dragons."

"Yes, you've mentioned them." Taiyang's brows creased. "I hope Ozpin is aware of this problem."

"He is, but there isn't much he can do," Ruby explained. "Since they have dragons already, he can't expel them. And I heard Cardin's dad has been threatening to sue Ozpin." She clenched her fists. "Cardin's the worst! At least the others care about their dragons. They've been taking care of Mudslide, because Cardin just left her here!"

Qrow shook his head. "Gotta love the system we got. As long as an asshole can fight and pay a ton of money, they get everything they don't deserve handed to them on a silver platter."

Storm glanced at Fang, her fins twitching. "I didn't know Mudslide was just left here."

Fang looked uncomfortably to the side. "Yeah… That's… That sucks."

"I feel bad for her, but…I can't be friends with someone who would attack Twiggy." Storm curled her tail around her feet, shaking her head in confusion.

"Being her friend might make her stop," Tempest noted.

"There are no truly evil dragons, even if there are evil people," Quake said. "We do as our Riders command, but we try to avoid hurting each other if possible. If you help her, she may be able to get through to her Rider."

"Maybe," Storm muttered doubtfully. _I don't think anything can get through to that human._

Qrow stretched his arms. "So, who wants to hear about what happened at this one inn on the way here?"

"No," Taiyang said flatly.

At the same time, Salty let out a sharp bark. "Rrrow! Dum!"

Everyone but Qrow burst out laughing.

….

Winter arrived precisely at noon.

Weiss and Specter stood in the courtyard, staring at the approaching form of Steele. His metallic wings glinted in the cold sunlight. As he drew close enough to see the two, he fanned out his frills and let out a piercing whistle.

Specter was bouncing up and down with excitement. He couldn't believe it! Another ice dragon! He was finally meeting another ice dragon! He had seen the moving pictures on Weiss's Scroll, of course, but this was actually real!

"Calm yourself, Specter," Weiss scolded, though she knew she was feeling even giddier than him at that moment. She hadn't seen Winter in person in years. The day Winter had disowned their father and joined the Atlas Flight Squad had marked the last time Jacques would allow any contact between the two. Weiss, of course, had continued talking to her sister in secret via email.

When Steele landed, Weiss couldn't keep from running over. "Winter! Steele!" she called out.

Steele rumbled softly, bowing his head to look at his Rider's sister. She had certainly grown in the years since he last saw her. He looked at the bouncing ice dragonet with some disdain. "Would you stop that?" he growled. "We are two of the only three ice dragons in the world. Show some dignity."

Specter stopped immediately, ducking his head.

Winter slid effortlessly from her saddle and gave her gear a cursory check before turning to Weiss. Her hands were behind her back, and her head was tilted upward, so that she was looking down at her sister. "You've gotten a bit rowdy since last time we spoke."

Weiss felt her own spine straightening automatically as she regained some control over her composure. "Hello, Winter. It's lovely to see you again."

A small smile came to Winter's face. "It's good to see you too." She cast an appraising eye over the courtyard and the school. "Hm. A decent enough establishment. I know Ozpin has a good reputation."

"He and the other professors have been teaching us very well. Professor Goodwitch hasn't had any trouble with your instructions."

"I'm pleased to hear that," Winter said. "And, how are you?"

"Well, I believe I did well on my exams. Specter has been perfectly healthy since his hatching. Your recent training video-"

Weiss was interrupted by a sharp pain and a moment of blackness. She yelped, putting a hand to her head, which Winter's palm had already retreated from.

"Not your lessons, you boob! I mean, how are you? Are you getting along well with your teammates? Are you making any friends? Have you or have you not been seeing anyone romantically? You hardly bring that up in your emails, and it's getting rather vexing!" Winter snapped.

Specter, meanwhile, let out a hiss at the sudden strike to Weiss and lunged forward, only to be stopped by the new ice dragon's paw.

"Be still," Steele said, though not without a hint of kindness in his voice. "Have you never seen an alpha swat their siblings?"

Specter growled, but sat down, seeing that Weiss didn't seem scared or sad. "I don't like seeing Weiss hurt," he muttered sullenly.

"Of course not, but my Winter would never harm her," Steele assured him. "She loves her sister even more than she does me. Now, my name is Steele. You are Specter, correct?"

Specter blinked up at Steele, still confused by his last comment. The older dragon seemed totally unconcerned with the idea of his Rider loving someone else more than him. _Does Weiss love me the best…?_ Specter wondered, his stomach twisting.

Steele glared down at the dragonet. "Do you not know how to answer your elders?"

"Oh, uh, yes!" Specter said, quickly sitting upright. "I'm Specter."

Winter was watching Specter, nodding her head slowly. "Your dragon is certainly protective of you."

"That goes both ways," Weiss said, smiling gently at her dragon.

"Of course, it does," Winter replied briskly. "Now, do show me around the grounds. I'm familiar with Beacon only due to pictures and accounts from other soldiers. I will also need to inspect your quarters, and your dragon's."

"I assure you everything's in perfect order." Weiss had made absolutely sure that her part of the room and Specter's stall were spotless. "Where would you like to go first?"

"The arenas. I would like to untack and settle Steele in for the day."

The four started toward the arenas while Weiss answered Winter's questions. "It really wasn't that dangerous," she said regarding the fight with the thieves who had attempted to steal the P.E.N.I device.

"Are you aware of what the device is that you saved?" Winter asked, her eyes flashing.

"Um…"

"The correct answer is no," Winter said firmly. "Whether it's true or not. Understand."

"Of course, I do!" Weiss replied quickly. "We haven't said anything- I mean, we don't know anything about it!"

"Good." Winter looked at the stalls with a passive expression, though her eyes darkened when she saw a certain water dragon. _So, Qrow Branwen is here. Wonderful…_

Steele drew himself up and narrowed his eyes when he saw Salty. The water dragon cocked his head at him, giving him that stupid, challenging look. "Greetings, Salty," he said, nodding curtly.

"Steele," Salty replied, keeping his voice cool and casual. He stretched in a slightly exaggerated manner before lying down again.

Tempest suppressed a giggle, exchanging a knowing look with Quake. "Hello, Steele. Nice to see you again."

"Good to see you too, Tempest. And you, Quake," Steele said politely before turning back to Specter, purposefully pointing his back at Salty. "So, are you getting on well with your teammates?"

"Oh, yes!" Specter said. "Storm in particular. She's very kind to everyone."

"Are you the alpha?"

"Uh…" Specter thought about lying, but couldn't bring himself to do so. "No. Pit's the strongest and the smartest, so we listen to him usually." He was surprised when Steele gave him an approving smile.

"It is good to know one's place," Steele noted. "Even if that place isn't at the top." He twitched when Salty snorted loudly behind him. "If you'll excuse me, I need to retire. We will speak again."

"Of course!" Specter said, nodding eagerly. "I'll see you soon! Uh, I mean…" He tried to stop his tail from thumping. "I hope you rest well, Steele. It was lovely meeting you."

"Likewise," Steele said, inclining his head.

As Winter led Steele to the nearest empty stall, Specter approached Salty. "Hello. I'm Specter, Weiss's dragon. I heard you're the dragon of Ruby's…uncle? Was that it?"

"Yes," Salty replied with a smile. "I'm Salty. Nice to meet you."

Specter frowned when he noticed the fresh injuries on the older dragon. "What happened? Are you okay?"

"Oh, I'm fine. Just a scuffle." Salty didn't feel like explaining the whole thing in front of Steele. "You're certainly friendly. Didn't expect that from an ice dragon." He could practically feel Steele glaring at him after that comment.

Specter tilted his head. "Really? I try to be pleasant with everyone unless they're being stupid or crude. There's this water dragon named Barracuda." He shook his head. "She definitely deserves the rough edge of my tongue."

Salty let out a laugh. _There it is._ "Well, you keep being pleasant, kiddo."

Winter returned to Weiss. "Let us retire Specter now. Then, you can show me the rest of the school."

After returning Specter to his stall, which Winter deemed as "adequate," the sisters walked around the school. At one point, Weiss asked something that she had been waiting to discuss in person.

"Winter…what is your opinion concerning the Faunus?"

Winter cocked an eyebrow. "What is yours?"

"I asked first!" Weiss protested. When Winter continued to give her a cold look, she sighed. "I've been realizing that practically everything we knew before is wrong. I've become good friends with a few Faunus. Sun Wukong, Velvet Scarlatina…" She omitted Blake's name, of course. "Even issues concerning the White Fang might not be as black and white as everyone thinks."

"You're absolutely right," Winter said immediately.

"Really?" Weiss perked up. She had never discussed the Faunus with Winter, and had assumed that her sister's opinions had been similar to her own former opinions.

"Of course," Winter said. "The Atlas Flight Squad may not have as many Faunus as the Squads in other kingdoms, but they are there. I have fought alongside several worthy Riders, then watched them face ridicule and harassment on the streets." Her fists clenched for a moment, and a crease appeared on her brow.

"Why were we taught that they're inferior?" Weiss asked. "And why doesn't Father change the company's policies? It wouldn't cost him that much!"

"Do you really not know?" Winter huffed. "I thought you were less naïve than that. Father won't change because he doesn't have to. He enjoys a position of power that is partially fueled by his underpaid Faunus laborers. Even if the White Fang causes us some harm, he is able to recover. As long as he isn't personally hurt, as long as there isn't a significant benefit in changing his ways, he isn't going to."

"Even after what happened to Snowflake?" Weiss asked.

A pained expression crossed Winter's face briefly before being replaced by her usual mask. "Snowflake didn't have an impact on him, only Mother, and Father stopped truly caring about her years ago, if he ever did in the first place. She served her…purpose for him." Despite her best efforts, the sheer disgust she felt managed to creep into her voice in that last sentence.

Weiss bit her lip. "Is there no way to help her?"

Winter shook her head. "We have enough on our plates helping ourselves and protecting the people of Remnant. If a person won't help themselves, there's not much we can do for them. If Mother chooses to drown her sorrows in alcohol, that's her choice."

"I suppose…" Weiss muttered. _I don't know if I could have helped myself without Winter's encouragement, though._ For a moment, she found herself thinking of Whitley. What was he doing this holiday season? Was he truly as happy with his position as the favored child as he seemed to be? Before she could think too deeply about it, Winter snapped her fingers to get her attention.

"Now, then. The classrooms."

"Oh, of course!" Weiss hurried to continue showing her sister around the school, ridiculously glad that Winter seemed to approve of what she saw.

…..

"So, what's the news in Atlas?" Quake asked, trying to dissipate the static that was obviously building between Salty and Steele as the dragons sat in a cluster in the arena. The other adult dragons were totally rapt with this grown ice dragon, Flurry in particular.

"It must be exciting being in the Flight Squad," she said, fluttering her fins a little. "Was it hard getting in?"

"We had to go through several tests," Steele explained calmly. "Concerning combat ability, flying, and our bond as dragon and Rider."

"Wow! You must be so skilled!"

Salty let out a loud cough.

Ignoring that, Steele turned to answer Quake. "As for Atlas…things are not going well. I'm sure you're aware of the brood thefts."

"Definitely. Salty was injured fighting some of the Riders involved," Tempest said.

Steele turned to look sharply at Salty. "Did you recognize any of them?"

Salty's fins twitched. "I… My sister is…involved, but she didn't participate in the attack."

"I see." For a moment, Steele's dark blue eyes showed a hint of sympathy. "Those injuries look severe. I hope you're resting yourself."

Salty snorted. "I know how to deal with injuries. We might not be Flight Squad, but Qrow and I are in danger pretty regularly."

"Indeed. Well, there are a good number of egg thefts in the outskirts of Atlas, though no one has tried attacking the ones closer to the center." Steele's frills flared out proudly. "The Flight Squad is based around those areas, after all."

"And why don't you guys protect the outer regions?" Salty asked.

"We go where we're ordered to go," Steele said shortly. "But there has been some…worrying news. Winter has been in contact with some members of the company, and has found that someone may be infiltrating it."

All of the dragons stirred at this. If the Schnee Dust Company was being threatened, that could mean disaster for any future elemental dragons. "Any idea who?" Ignis asked.

Steele rolled his eyes. "If we knew, we would have arrested them already. It's just something I overheard."

Blaze warbled nervously. "Could that we why the Beacon dragonets have so many disabilities spread amongst them?"

Steele hissed. "It's happening here too, then?"

"Too?" Salty sat up. "So, Atlas Dragonry has deformed dragonets?"

At this, Steele's fins drooped and his wings trembled. "No… The dragonets that are being trained right now are all well, at least well enough to pass Council inspection."

"Then, what-?"

"They had to…go through a large number of hatchlings in order to make it so," Steele finished, swallowing loudly.

A coldness settled over the dragons that had nothing to do with the snow, and it didn't go away when they went to sleep later on.

 **Yeah. As I said last chapter, we're getting into some darker territory. I hope you guys don't hate me for some of the things I'll be doing in the future!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support in exchange for rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	56. Signs and Whispers

**Rawr, everyone. Happy Dragon Tuesday! Today still sees me in the midst of a really shitty cold, so I'll keep this note brief. After all this time, you finally get to start seeing more of the villains! Are you excited? I'm sure you are.**

 **Enjoy!**

Roman knew that he would be spending Yule alone. He knew that contacting Neo at this point was too risky. That didn't stop him from feeling a wave of bitterness as he watched the families walk by on the cold streets of Mistral. It didn't stop him from glaring at the brightly-lit toy shops, knowing that Neo would be visiting them without him this year, if she even bothered looking at them alone.

It certainly didn't stop him from wanting to punch his boss in the face for summoning him on Yule Eve. It was like she remembered that he had nothing to do that night and was mocking him for it.

 _I guess heartless bitches never take vacations,_ he thought as he entered the abandoned warehouse at the edge of town. He walked through the battered doors and through the maze of boxes that eventually led to a concealed door in the floor. Unlocking it with the combination he had been given, he climbed down the ladder into the cold cavern beneath.

As he walked down the tunnel, the voices of dragons became louder, causing him to shudder. There were a few dragons underground here, mostly due to their Riders being there temporarily. They had an entrance further from the city, and enclosures in the deeper parts of the complex but their growls and roars carried far. Roman had never liked dragons. They unsettled him with their too-intelligent eyes and ability to speak human words with their alien tongues. Still, Neo loved them. That was the important thing.

Roman closed his eyes, calling to mind the one picture Neo had sent him in secret, a picture he had protected with several passwords and only looked at when he knew none of his boss's people were around. It showed Neo in full Rider gear, standing next to a pony-sized wind dragon. The dragon was a mint-green color, shot through with swirls of creamy yellow, and had pale blue eyes. It was probably much bigger now.

 _She,_ Roman reminded himself. _Whisper. That's her name._

Cinder had fed him tidbits of information concerning Neo's progress, of course. She was doing well with her studies and was getting along with her teammates. More importantly, she had already gathered a great deal of information concerning Lionheart. He would be very easy to manipulate when the time came.

Roman doubted that Neo was actually getting along with her teammates, though. After all, two of them were Cinder's cronies, while one was a disguised mutt from the White Fang, one of Adam's favorites.

 _Speaking of Adam…_ Roman groaned under his breath as he walked through one of the lit, heated underground rooms, where an orange fire dragon with dark red marks that made him think of scabs was curled up. The dragon growled softly as Roman passed by, his golden eyes carefully following the human until he was in the next tunnel. _That one's even creepier than the others,_ he thought with a grimace.

The short, stuffy tunnel broadened out into a wide, well-ventilated room that held his boss and her dragon, a golden beast with black stripes and striking blue eyes. Both were lounging casually, the dragon on a large bed of fireproof cloth, Cinder on a cozy-looking chair. Roman swallowed as the sharp eyes of the fire dragon seemed to penetrate his very soul.

"Blessed Yule, Cinder," he said, tipping his hat. "Do I have another hit tonight?"

Cinder smiled calmly. "Of course not, Roman," she said in that silken, honeyed voice. "It's a holiday. I simply wanted to call you here to give you a gift. Call it a token of appreciation for a job well done."

Roman's brows went up, and an easy grin came to his face, even as he mentally calculated what Cinder was playing at. _She wants to keep my loyalty, so she's acting like my friend. Fine. I'm well-practiced at playing this game._ "I'm flattered," he said with a roguish wink. "I didn't know you liked me so much."

Cinder allowed herself a small look of amusement. "Don't get ahead of yourself. What I like is the pair of fully-grown brood dragons you managed to get us. You went above and beyond what was strictly necessary. Between that, and our plants in the Schnee Dust Company, we can move on with our plan with greater speed than before. That deserves a reward."

"Greater speed than before?" Roman tilted his head. "So, we'll be acting before the Dragon Festival, then?"

"The big announcement will still be made as scheduled," Cinder explained. "But we can put more effort into the buildup, into spreading more discord so that our message will be better received." She folded her hands. "And we can also put more thought into getting our hands on that little machine Ozpin and Ironwood have been working on."

The striped dragon let out a pointed growl, glancing toward the dragon-sized tunnel to her right. "Nnneo!"

Cinder looked over, her golden eyes momentarily betraying a look of genuine tenderness. "Of course, Strike. We won't keep them waiting any longer."

"Neo?" Immediately, any more questions about the plans faded to the back of Roman's mind. "She's here?"

"Yes, I arranged for her and Whisper to come for a few hours. She'll need to be back by morning, of course, since her story paints her as not having a home to go to." Cinder nodded to Strike, who warbled down the tunnel.

Seconds later, Neo emerged and rushed right into Roman's arms, biting her lip to suppress a sob. Roman lifted her up, not caring that Cinder was witnessing his display of emotion, and held his adoptive daughter close. "How's my favorite Dragon Rider?" he murmured.

Neo smiled, gripping his shoulder tightly.

A mint and cream-colored, elephant-sized wind dragon trotted out of the tunnel, tilting her head curiously. "Is that him?" she chirped to Strike, ducking her head a little as the larger dragon regarded her.

"Yes, child," Strike purred. "Be cautious when approaching him. He doesn't like us much."

Whisper was unconcerned. "Oh, he'll like me. If he likes Neo, he has to like me." _He's the other one, after all. The one Neo talks to._ She couldn't say that out loud, though. Confidently, she bounded over, barking a greeting.

Roman jumped a little at the sudden closeness of the dragon. "It seems that Whisper isn't very well-named." Seeing Neo's hopeful smile, he held out his hand for the dragon to sniff. He felt the scaly snout against his palm and shivered. Whisper stared at him with her pale blue eyes, which held a very human look of earnestness and a clear wish to please. "Um, yes. Hello there," he managed.

Whisper's tail swished cheerfully, and she licked Roman's face. "Hi! I know you can't understand me, but hi!"

"She…seems very friendly," he said, suppressing a shudder as he took a handkerchief from his pocket and hurriedly wiped his face. "I assume we need to stay underground," he added, looking at Cinder.

"I'm afraid so," Cinder replied. "She can't be seen walking with you in public. You have developed a bit of a reputation, after all."

"Of course." Roman bowed deeply, taking off his hat. "Thank you, Cinder." _It doesn't hurt to show my gratitude with a little excess. Most bosses I've met love that._

"You're most welcome. Go ahead and get caught up." Cinder gave him a benevolent smile as the two walked away.

Once they were gone, Strike padded over to Cinder and nuzzled her shoulder. "Cin. Gud."

Cinder gently stroked the black stripes on her dragon's snout. "I would hate to lose his loyalty," she murmured. "He has his uses, after all. And he's smart. He knew exactly why I brought Neo for him."

At that moment, echoing footsteps from another tunnel caused her to tense. Strike let out a low growl as Adam emerged. He turned toward the two and frowned. "Let's hope you were right about the Dust amounts needed for this next hatching. My men are growing impatient with the lack of results."

"I would have figured they were used to waiting for you to weed out the results of your incompetence," Cinder said coldly. "Leave the breeding to me. You and your men just keep doing what you do best, and you will be well rewarded."

Adam inclined his head. "Of course." _Enjoy your position at the top for now, human. Once the schools fall and the Faunus Riders outnumber your rogues, it'll be all too easy to overthrow your flimsy monarchy before you can even get both feet on the ground._

Cinder and Strike watched as the White Fang leader walked down the tunnel to his own bereaved dragon. Once he was gone, Strike let out a long hiss. "Bad," she muttered.

"Yes," Cinder muttered. _He won't be around much longer. Not if I can help it._ She would have to keep him around for a time, since he had insisted on choosing the fourth member of the team that was sent to Haven as part of their deal (a smart move on his part). Still, once the need for espionage ended, it would be easy enough to find a replacement for him.

 _That one young woman holds promise. What was her name? Sienna?_ Maybe Cinder would arrange for her to get the first successful hybrid dragon. Yes, that would be a good start.

…..

Roman sat with Neo in one of the dragon areas of the underground, which had several dragon beds, as well as comfortable chairs for Riders. He was pleasantly surprised to find that these areas didn't smell foul at all. _Of course, since only adult dragons usually come in here, they probably know to do their business outside._

"So, how are you enjoying school?" he asked.

Neo signed her answers, which didn't surprise him. Whispering would be too risky. Too many prying ears. "I'm happy there. Whisper is my best friend. Lionheart is completely incompetent, though, which is good for Cinder."

"So I've heard," Roman murmured. "How so?"

"Cowardly. Idiotic. Unable to hide the disabilities of his students' dragons." At this, a troubled look crossed Neo's face. "Is it really necessary to have so many?"

"According to Cinder, yes," Roman replied, shrugging his shoulders. He glanced at Whisper. "Um, I probably shouldn't say too much." Who knew what the dragons said to each other in secret?

Neo shook her head. "Whisper knows not to talk to the other dragons. I tell her."

 _So, Neo has someone else to whisper to,_ Roman thought. _I suppose that's where the name came from._ He looked at the dragon, who was giving him an inquisitive look. "I hope you take good care of her," he said sternly. When the dragon bobbed her head and gave Neo an adoring look, Roman found himself smiling.

"I hoped you'd like her," Neo said, her mismatched eyes shining with relief.

"If you like her, so do I," Roman assured her. When the dragon warbled happily, his smile widened. _Maybe it's because she's smaller, but there is some charm to this one._ "Cinder says you're getting along with your teammates. Is that…actually true?"

At this, Neo's expression became hesitant. "I like Emerald," she signed. "She's the nicest. At least, she acts nicer than the others. She was mostly fake at the start, but I think she might actually like me a little by now."

"That's something," Roman admitted.

"Mercury is also hard to read. He's not as nice, which is almost a relief. I know he's not faking anything. Ilia…" Neo shook her head. "She's supposed to be our leader, but it's like she hates even looking at us. She and Justice don't even pretend to be part of a team. She could put our position in danger if she keeps it up."

"She named her dragon Justice?" Roman snorted. "She's a White Fang fanatic, all right."

Neo put a finger to her lips. "Don't say things like that. Remember, we're still working with them. For now."

Roman raised an eyebrow. For now? This could be sensitive. Just in case, he didn't say anything, but waved for Neo to elaborate.

"Cinder's plan is good, but it's flawed," Neo explained, moving her hands rapidly. "She has lots of powerful people, based on what I've heard and seen, but they all have their own goals. That's been made clear just by knowing Ilia. Once they have what they want, they'll either go their own way, or turn on her."

Roman nodded. He was aware of this, partially through his interactions with the White Fang, partially due to what he knew about the Branwen Tribe, another ally. _Raven will turn on us the instant she has whatever she wants._ "How do we survive this?" he asked.

That was his chief question, of course. It was why he had joined with Cinder as soon as her strength and vision revealed itself, when it became clear that he could thrive in the world she created. He wanted to survive, and he wanted Neo to survive. Most of all, he wanted them to survive as they were: free rogues who didn't need anyone. Adding this dragon into the mix would complicate things, but Roman was flexible.

"Make friends," Neo replied. "Contracts mean nothing, but personal bonds may mean everything. Even if you don't mean it, convince people you're their friend."

"I am good at that," Roman said with a smirk.

"Also, you need to open up to the dragons," Neo added. When Roman groaned, she held up her hand. "Dragons are kindhearted, and they don't want to hurt people. I've learned that at Haven. Unless you're a Grimm, a dragon will try not to kill you unless they specifically have to. If a dragon likes you, it'll try to convince its Rider to not hurt you, even if the Rider wants to. That may save your life."

"Noted." Roman glanced around. Anyone could be listening, but he was relatively convinced that no one knew sign language. "What are our chances of splitting when this is all over?" he asked, using his hands this time.

"Not good," Neo admitted. "Cinder made sure that our dragons would be siblings, so there is a bond between me and my teammates, even if we aren't close. We may have to get used to being prominent rogues in the spotlight."

"Well," Roman said aloud with a grin. "It would be nice to be more open about my dramatic side," he said, twirling his cane with a flourish.

Neo covered her mouth, barely managing to hide a vocal giggle. "True. I think we can get through this, as long as we make sure to associate with the right people and not start any trouble," she signed.

"At least not for ourselves," Roman corrected. "We'll make plenty of trouble for others."

Neo smirked. "Don't we always?"

They spoke for a little while longer, before a call from Cinder summoned them back to the chamber, where Whisper and Neo were then escorted through the next tunnel. Before leaving, Neo hugged Roman tightly, trying to keep from crying in front of their employer.

Roman kissed Neo's brow as he put her down and looked at Whisper. "Take care of her," he said again.

Whisper gave Roman a long look. This time, she just nodded her head solemnly, feeling the raw love and fear in this human's voice. _He's the other one she whispers to,_ she thought. _He's the most important person, next to Neo. I need to remember that._

She thought about her brothers and sister, about the secrets they had been told to keep from each other since their hatching, since they learned to understand the words of their Riders. It was wrong. She could tell that much. Wrong and unnatural. She hated the secrets. She hated that Neo chose to whisper to her while pretending to be mute around everyone else. She hated that Justice was automatically wary of every human he met. She hated that Jade and Rudder refused to speak to her most of the time.

Even Strike couldn't be trusted! Neo had told her that Cinder wasn't trustworthy, so that had to mean that the older fire dragon was also dangerous, even though she seemed nice.

 _Neo is the only friend I can have,_ Whisper thought mournfully as she walked down the tunnel back toward the school. _Neo and the man. Roman. That's it. We're the only ones who can whisper to each other. Silence everywhere else. Everywhere else… Nothing._

That silence enfolded Neo and Whisper as they snuck back to the stalls and settled in a cloud over each of them as they went to bed, closing their eyes to a lonely, muted Yule.

 **So, Neo isn't mute in this story, but I have a reason based largely on a personal headcanon as to why she chooses not to talk out loud. You'll see what that is later on.**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while also getting rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	57. A Yuletide Disaster

**Rawr, everybody! It's Dragon Tuesday. As you can tell from the chapter title, this is a simple, nice chapter where nothing bad happens… Yeah, no. When am I ever nice?**

 **Enjoy!**

It was close to midnight on Yule Eve when all the members of Teams RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN were able to meet in the common area. Weiss was the last to arrive, apologizing profusely.

"Don't worry about it," Yang assured her. "Big sis time is important. Right, Ruby?" she added, ruffling Ruby's hair.

"Yep!" Ruby giggled, swatting Yang's hands away. "I can't wait to meet her tomorrow. Anyway, who's gonna be the gift person this year?"

"I think the youngest should do it," Jaune suggested, noticing the hopeful look on Ruby's face.

"Sounds good to me," Yang said, winking quickly at Jaune.

"Yay! That's me!" Ruby zipped over to the pile of presents. "Okay, this one's to Blake from Pyrrha."

Blake accepted the present eagerly and tore off the wrappings to reveal a signed copy of her favorite book: _The Man with Two Souls_. "Thank you, Pyrrha! I've been trying to get my hands on a signed copy for years!" She hugged the book to her chest. "Anyone who gets hot cocoa on this will die. Painfully."

Next came Jaune's gift to Weiss, which was a simple necklace with a silver pendant that looked like an ice dragon, frills and all. "This is gorgeous, Jaune!" she gasped. "Wherever did you find it?"

"There's a guy my dad knows who has a small shop in town," Jaune explained. "He has pendants that look like all the dragon species. I had to order the ice dragon in advance, since there isn't as much of a demand for them."

"Thank you!" Weiss said, immediately putting on the necklace. She was, admittedly, unused to wearing jewelry that wasn't all light metal and jewels, but there was something nice about the simple leather string and the heavier, solid feel of the pendant over her chest.

The other gifts from the secret exchange were given thusly. Some had been easy. Neptune, for example, got Sage, and knew exactly what brand of green tea he liked best. Others, like Weiss's gift to Sun, had required a little creativity. She had eventually settled on foods such as banana bread and roasted chestnuts, which Neptune had assured her Sun would love.

She had actually tried baking the banana bread herself initially. "The oven, unfortunately, was malfunctioning," she said with a sniff.

Ruby snorted. "Is that what you call what happened?"

"Yes, you dunce!"

"Wait, is that why there are scorch marks on the wall in the kitchen?" Ren asked. "I thought Nora had tried baking something."

"Hey, I resent that!" Nora snapped.

Sun laughed. "Well, store-bought is totally cool too. Thanks, Weiss! Not many people would destroy an oven for me."

"I didn't destroy the oven…" Weiss muttered, fuming. Her expression softened a little when Blake tried and failed to suppress a snicker next to her.

After the secret exchange gifts, the teams drifted apart to give all the other presents they had bought. Neptune, as promised, had gotten Sun some warmer pajamas (light blue with little clouds on them). Sun put on the long-sleeved fleece shirt and admitted that it was pretty comfortable. He then gave Neptune a new set of riding goggles that had little wave designs inscribed on the metal parts. Neptune, knowing that this had to have cost his friend a fortune, hugged him tightly.

Scarlet got Sage inscribed leather cuffs that could be worn over a flight jacket, and Sage gave Scarlet a new red cape with gold embroidery along the edges. Mentally blaming his tiredness, Scarlet found himself kissing Sage's cheek upon seeing his gift.

Sage responded with a shy smile and a deep blush. He hesitantly wrapped his arm around his friend's shoulders, his heart thudding when Scarlet happily snuggled against his side.

Ruby was hugging Weiss, who had special-ordered a miniature Atlesian robotic dragon that had been painted to look like Storm. The tiny toy was fluttering around the common area while Ruby watched with shining eyes. Weiss had also bought a boxed set of a series Blake had expressed an interest in (in hardcover, no less), and some fireproof leather riding gloves for Yang.

Blake's gift for Weiss, she felt, was a bit humble compared to the books she had received. It was a simple bracelet with a pattern of snowflakes going across it. She had seen Jaune's necklace, and thought it would match. When Weiss's eyes lit up at the sight of it, Blake decided that it hadn't been such a lame idea after all.

Pyrrha couldn't stop staring at the wooden dragon figurine Jaune had bought her. It had been custom-made, and painted to look like Titan. She very nearly took a leaf from Scarlet's book at that moment. She smiled when Jaune opened her gift: a limited edition Pumpkin Pete plushie. She suppressed a giggle at how cute he looked hugging the large stuffed rabbit against his chest.

Ren had bought Nora a huge box of maple sugar candies. "One at a time, Nora," he warned, as she started scarfing them. "And pace yourself!"

Nora didn't listen, of course. She had bought Ren a new pink apron, as well as a haiku book. She pouted when he took the candy box away. "Hey, no stealing my present."

"You'll make yourself sick," Ren scolded. "Remember, we're spending Yule with Jaune's family in the morning."

With that reminder, everyone reluctantly gathered their presents, threw out the wrapping paper, and trudged off to their rooms.

Scarlet and Sage found themselves walking a little slower than the others. Sage's arm was still wrapped loosely around Scarlet's shoulders. As they drew close to the door to their room, which had just closed after Neptune, Sage stopped walking. When Scarlet turned to look at him, he bent down, pausing a few inches away from his friend's face, suddenly uncertain.

It took only a moment for Scarlet to realize what Sage was hoping for. His confused expression melted into a smile as he jumped up, looping his arms around Sage's shoulders and eagerly kissing him.

Sage let out a muffled yelp at the sudden contact before closing his eyes and gently parting his lips. He wrapped his arms around Scarlet's waist, easily lifting him off the ground. The kiss was warm, and a little clumsy, ending after just a few seconds. Sage looked at Scarlet's bright smile and flushed cheeks, and couldn't keep from grinning fully back.

Scarlet giggled, nuzzling Sage's neck. "You know, there isn't any mistletoe here," he noted.

Sage pecked Scarlet's cheek once before setting him down. "I know."

…..

Yule morning dawned with silvery light shining through all the windows due to the combined efforts of the snow below and the cold sun overhead. Teams RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN woke up with the dawn. Ruby, Nora, and Sun made certain of it

Breakfast was everything Nora had hoped for and more. There was cinnamon French toast smothered with frosting. There were pancakes with maple, blueberry, raspberry, butter pecan, hickory, and at least a dozen other syrups. There were chocolate chip waffles with peppermint whipped cream and pine-shaped sprinkles. There were brown sugar-glazed hams, fluffy scrambled eggs, bacon that still sizzled and popped in the serving dishes, sugared plums, and hot candied chestnuts (which Neptune confiscated from Sun until they could cool sufficiently). Hot and cold drinks were served throughout, ranging from eggnog to coffee to tea to five different flavors of hot chocolate.

The cafeteria had also been done up for the holiday season with several decorated pine trees, golden baubles in the windows, and even a giant ice sculpture of a dragon that very much resembled Ragnar.

Gifts were exchanged between family members. Ruby and Yang got custom-made leather coats from Qrow, along with saddles that had their dragons' names inscribed on the sides. Taiyang had bought them each a custom Atlesian dragon robot. Ruby's looked like Tempest while Yang's resembled Quake. Ruby watched as the two dragons flew alongside the one Weiss had given her. They also got an assortment of homemade treats that would last several weeks after Yule.

Blake and Weiss hadn't been forgotten, of course. Taiyang had brought an assortment of old books about earth dragons that he had read when Quake first hatched. Blake accepted these gladly. Weiss got special riding gloves that were lined with fleece on the inside. "Just in case Specter takes you somewhere a little too cold," Taiyang explained with a wink.

Winter's gifts for Weiss were largely practical, consisting of items like leather polish and brushes for cleaning grime off a dragon's scales. She was sitting at the opposite end of the table from Qrow, and had pointedly not said anything to him throughout the morning, though she was very polite to Taiyang.

At one point, Ruby chanced a glance under the table, wondering where Zwei was, and giggled when she saw him sitting at Winter's feet. Winter's face remained impassive as she scratched behind his ear and, after a casual question concerning the sensitivity of the dog's diet, snuck him a bit of ham.

Over at the Arc table, Jenny was in a heated competition with Nora, trying to figure out who could eat more pancakes. Ren and Joan made a futile attempt to stop them, but ultimately left them to their own devices. Johann eventually stepped in when Nora suggested drinking the syrup straight from the pitchers.

"I have to live with this seven-year-old, Nora," he said gently. "Please don't make it any harder than it needs to be."

Pyrrha was chatting with Mary and Sapphire, who were very impressed with her past as a dragon wrangler but, like Jaune, didn't show any sign of idolizing her for it.

All of Team JNPR got ornaments painted with the various colors of their dragons' elements, and boxes of homemade holiday fudge. Best of all was Jaune's present from his father: his grandfather's sword and shield, the latter of which bore the Arc family crest.

"Combat training will start soon," Johann said. "Beacon has good weapons, but it's better if you start with one of your own."

There were tears in Jaune's eyes as he tightly hugged his father, thanking him over and over again.

After breakfast, all the families took their dragons to the field and let them run loose. Joan and Silvia retired to the sidelines, where Silvia hid behind her mother, watching the dragons with wide eyes.

"She's still scared," Twiggy warbled sadly.

"The others aren't," Titan said, nudging her shoulder. "Don't be too sad." He had Jenny sitting on his back, and was strongly considering taking her back to his stall and hiding her under his bedding so that he could keep her. _Jaune probably wouldn't like that…_ he thought with a sigh.

"I don't see Nora's mother and father," Freya noted, tilting her head. "Or Ren's, or Pyrrha's. Where are they?" She let out a wide yawn. "And how long are we going to be out here?"

Ao Guang rolled his eyes. "Come on, Freya! Don't be such a stick in the mud! Let's play!"

"No thanks. I remember what happened the last time we played."

"Hey!" Guang huffed, noticing the way Storm's wings drooped in response to Freya's comment. "Don't bring that up!"

Qrow, with Weiss's permission, was getting acquainted with Specter. He was carefully examining the ice dragon's frills and admiring the unique shape of his back spines. "Nice. Very nice."

Specter whistled proudly, fully aware that he was passing whatever inspection was occurring. "That's right. I'm amazing. Go ahead and admire me, human."

Fang groaned. "Like his head needed to get any bigger…"

Pit was staying close to Blake, one wing open and wrapped loosely around her. He noticed that her parents weren't around. _They're probably in whatever mysterious place my egg came from. I wonder why Blake left that place. What was that place?_ He wished he could remember his hatching day better, because he knew somehow that he had been somewhere else when he had hatched, but his first clear memories were in the RWBY dorm room, before Fang, Storm, and Specter became a part of his life.

The SSSN dragons were remaining close to their partners, tolerating the occasional curious younger sibling from another family that would sometimes wander over. "No biting, Huo," Nymph cautioned.

"I'm not an idiot!" Huo snapped, digging his claws into the ground as a toddler patted his leg before being called away by her mother.

"Th-They shouldn't l-l-let the little ones r-roam like this," Zircon muttered, curling his tail around his feet. "I'm s-scared I'll s-s-step on them."

"They trust us not to," Nymph said calmly. "And we need to live up to that trust."

"Do you think our Riders will have little ones when they're older?" Nimbus asked, warbling gently at another child. "I hope so." He glanced at his Rider, who was very close to Sage, and felt a surge of satisfaction. "I bet Scarlet and Sage would have a very pretty one. Don't you, Zircon."

Zircon smiled genuinely at this and nodded, giving his Rider a fond look. There was definitely something different about the energy between Sage and Scarlet today, something good. Relaxing a bit, Zircon allowed his gaze to wander across the field. _There are a lot of little humans and Faunus,_ he thought. _And they aren't afraid. Well, except for the littlest Jaune-child,_ he amended, glancing toward the woman and tiny child who sat apart from everyone else. He didn't remember their names. _Maybe that Jaune-child is like me. Would she like me if I went over to her?_

Another child darted past his feet, and he decided to stay put. He noticed one of the other little Jaune-children wandering around. She looked at an earth dragon Zircon wasn't acquainted with, then started walking toward the edge of the field. Zircon looked toward the nearest team to that spot, and felt his blood run cold. Team CRDL.

They and their families had moved away from the larger gathering, probably due to Tornado, who seemed to be having a fit that Sky and his family was trying to hide. Growls of "Scuttling. Prey. Where's the prey? Hungry! Legs hurt. Run. Run for prey," could be heard. Mudslide was sulking under a tree. Tank was nudging the shoulder of a woman who could have been Dove's mother or older sister. Russel was patting Barracuda and talking quietly to her. It didn't look like his family had come.

Zircon watched as the child drew closer to Team CRDL. His heart stopped when Tornado, as if in slow motion, turned to eye the little girl. He watched the wind dragon's muscles grow tense. "N-N-N-Nymph!" he squeaked, starting to shake.

Nymph turned toward him, her dark blue eyes flashing with concern when she saw her brother looking more petrified than usual. "Zircon, are you okay? Do you need to-?"

"T-T-Tornado!" Zircon shouted, his eyes wide.

At the same time, Jaune saw where Jenny was going, saw Tornado's sudden change in mood, and let out a shout, running toward his sister. "Jenny, come back here!"

Tornado sprang forward with a roar. "Prey! Hunt prey!"

Everyone nearby immediately sprang into action, trying to reach the child before Tornado did. Dragons bellowed in confusion. Then, Ragnar swooped from overhead, landing squarely on Tornado, trapping the dragonet between his four paws and setting himself down so that there was enough weight on the wind dragon's back to keep him from moving.

Jenny froze, her eyes widening with terror, her mouth opening but not letting out a single noise. While Ragnar bore down on Tornado, the small human was suddenly covered by a large form that pulled her close with giant paws and folded its wings around her. A gentle warble sounded in her ear, and she started sobbing.

Jaune ran until he reached Jenny, who was now being held protectively by Twiggy. A rush of pride went through Jaune as his dragon glared menacingly at Tornado, hissing a warning. Within seconds, all the dragons of RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN ran over and planted themselves between Jenny and Tornado, even a shaking Zircon.

Tornado was thrashing underneath Ragnar. "Enemy! Crushed! Give me my prey!"

"Hush," Ragnar growled, his eyes wide and his ears flicking nervously. "Don't make this worse for yourself."

Tank was pacing back and forth, whimpering. "What did you do, Tornado? Why did you do that?"

Barracuda tossed her head, not quite sure what to think. "That one's…too small to be an enemy. She wasn't a threat. What was that idiot thinking?"

Mudslide just let out a humorless bark of laughter. "You're in trouble now."

Sky hurried to his dragon's side, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Settle, Tornado," he hissed, his voice shaking. Tears were streaming down his cheeks and it felt as if there was no blood in his face. "Please settle!" He was intimately aware of his parents muttering behind him. "They'll shoot you, Tornado! Do you hear me? Settle!"

Tornado thrashed once more before his Rider's voice registered. "Sky…crying?" He turned, still snarling a little. "Who made Sky sad? I'll kill what made Sky sad!" He roared loudly, then yelped as Ragnar pushed down even more.

"Settle, Tornado! Please settle!" Sky hugged his dragon around the neck, trembling as Tornado finally relaxed.

"Scared Sky? Cold Sky?"Tornado muttered, sitting down and wrapping his wings around his Rider. "Protect Sky."

Ragnar waited a minute before standing up fully again, though he didn't move away from Tornado. Ozpin had rushed over and was standing by his foreleg. The two exchanged a glance.

 _This is bad,_ Ragnar thought as he looked at the gathered people, many of whom were talking frantically on their Scrolls or herding their children away from the area. He looked down at Tornado as the poor, damaged wind dragon held onto his distressed Rider. _This is very bad…_

….

It took nearly an hour, and a large cup of hot chocolate, before Jenny was sufficiently calm. Ozpin stayed with the Arcs the entire time. He placed a plate of cookies in front of Jenny, commending her for being so brave, then took Johann aside.

"I'm terribly sorry about this," he said, bowing his head shamefully. "This should never have happened."

"What is wrong with that dragon?" Johann growled. "And why was it allowed outside with the others?!"

"Tornado is a bit…erratic, but he has never been dangerous," Ozpin said, though he knew he wasn't being honest. The many fights between Team CRDL and Team JNPR had exposed a very ferocious, unstable side to Tornado. But Ozpin couldn't say that. The wind dragonet's life was already in danger.

Johann was unconvinced. "I'm starting to wonder if I should have sent Jaune here at all!" he snapped. "Beacon is supposed to be the greatest dragonry on Remnant, but it seems that you're just producing runts and crazies!"

"Hey!" Jaune stood up, his eyes blazing. "Leave Twiggy out of this!"

Katie covered her ears, letting out a sob. "Stop yelling!"

Mary placed a hand on Jaune's shoulder, urging him to sit down. Johann took a deep breath before speaking in a level voice.

"I'm reporting that dragon to the Council," he said.

Ozpin bowed his head. "No need. I already did." With how many witnesses there were, it was all he could do. Otherwise, the Council could easily accuse him of negligence, and send someone to monitor Beacon at all times. _And they'd surely find other dragons that didn't meet their standards…_

The meeting ended with Ozpin's departure, and the Arcs sat in subdued silence for a few minutes. Eventually, Sapphire spoke up. "You know, it was pretty cool how all twelve dragons came to protect you," she said, grinning at Jenny. "At least you know you're safe whenever you come here."

Jenny looked up at Sapphire, smiling a little. "Twiggy held me till the scary dragon went away. She's my favorite."

Jaune smiled, ruffling her hair. "Mine too."

The Arcs went back to their room. Jaune met up with his friends outside, where Pyrrha pulled him into a hug. "How was it?" she asked.

"Well, Jenny's okay," Jaune said. "Dad's having major doubts about Beacon…and Twiggy. He accused Ozpin of producing 'runts and crazies.'"

"Don't pay too much attention to things said in the heat of the moment," Pyrrha urged gently. "He just saw his daughter nearly get attacked. People say things they don't mean when they're angry and scared."

"We saw your mom and Silvia walking by," Nora said, grimacing. "Silvia was looking kinda pale."

"She'll never go near a dragon for as long as she lives after this," Jaune sighed.

"As long as she lives is a pretty long time," Ren noted. "A lot can happen."

"What about Tornado?" Ruby asked. "Is he…gonna be reported?"

"Already has been," Jaune said.

"I mean, there's no way he wasn't going to be." Weiss shrugged. "Not after that."

"I know," Ruby sighed. "Do you… Do you think they'll…?"

"I hope not," Jaune said honestly. "I don't like Tornado or Team CRDL, but I don't want to see any dragon culled."

Ren thought back to his day with the aggressive wind dragon. He had been mostly terrified of being bitten throughout the day, but there had been an odd charm to Tornado and the way he was so easily distracted by shiny objects. It was like the mind of a small child had mixed with that of a savage beast, and then chose to reside within a gigantic, powerful dragon. _In short, a combination doomed to fail._

Yule dinner that night was a mellow affair, even with the delicious assortment of turkey, pot roast, duck, and every vegetable cooked in every way imaginable. The Arcs in particular were nearly silent. When everyone parted for the night, Jaune shared a hug with his mom before he rejoined his team. Taiyang gave Ruby and Yang encouraging smiles as he left. Winter just nodded once to Weiss before going back to her room.

The teams went to bed early that night, exhausted from the day's events. They were unaware that one of the beds in the freshman dorms was vacant, that Sky Lark had slipped from the building and was curled up at that moment on a bed of hay with a snoring Tornado.

The wind dragon slept peacefully, unaware that anything was wrong. He had quite forgotten about the events in the field, and had been perfectly content to play with his baubles until he got tired. He had been pleased when Sky chose to sleep next to him rather than leaving like he usually did. As far as Tornado was concerned, all was right with the world.

Sky didn't sleep that night. He just stared at the ceiling of the stall, listening to his dragon's snores, wondering if this would end up being one of the last times he'd be allowed such a luxury.

 **So, yeah. You had to know bad stuff was going to start coming to Beacon. Canon has cursed the place, after all. But you'll notice I put Scarlet and Sage together in this chapter, so you'll at least have some shippiness to counter the angst!**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	58. Looming Dread

**RAWR, EVERYONE! No one killed me for last week, so that's good. Let's just…keep that mindset, okay? Good.**

 **I just gotta say: I watched** _ **Nomad of Nowhere**_ **, and holy crap I am hooked. These characters are already my children, and I will protect them with my life. You can almost certainly expect fanfics once there are a few more episodes out.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

The families went home the day after Yule. Winter had to leave first thing in the morning in order to catch the shuttle that would take them to Atlas by the next day.

"And remember to keep emailing me updates," she was saying as she tacked up Steele.

"Of course, Winter!"

Specter's tail was twitching, and he whistled sadly. "Do you have to leave already? We barely got to talk."

"Being in a Flight Squad is demanding work," Steele replied. "I'm sure we will see more of each other in the summer, if Weiss can negotiate things so that she can stay with the military instead of her father. I hope my Winter suggests it to her."

"Wouldn't that make her father sad?" Specter asked. "Actually, where are her parents? Were they too busy to come here?"

"Yes," Steele muttered. "That's one way to put it…"

Salty emerged from his stall, scuffing the ground with a webbed paw. "Well, have fun with your army stuff."

Steele snorted. "The Atlesian Army is a different branch from the Flight Squad." He glanced sideways at the water dragon. "I…hope the rest of your recovery goes well."

Salty blinked in surprise. "Uh, yeah. Thanks."

Weiss and Specter walked Winter and Steele to the courtyard, where Winter pulled her sister into a slightly stiff hug. "Keep your eyes open," she said quietly. "And take care of Specter. Dragon Riders need to be vigilant right now. Remember, keep quiet about the tech unless Ozpin tells you otherwise."

"I will," Weiss promised, closing her eyes and nuzzling a little against her sister's shoulder. She had missed her so much! "Will I see you at the Dragon Festival?"

"If my flight is sent, yes," Winter replied. "I hope you make a good impression. You're the second Ice Rider, after all. Show them what you and Specter are capable of."

"We will, though aren't I technically the fourth?"

Winter rolled her eyes as she drew back. "Snowflake was a glorified pet, and Glacier doesn't even have that honor. We are the only true Ice Riders."

"Of course." Weiss inclined her head. "Have a safe flight." She stood as straight as she could, hands folded as she watched her sister and Steele become smaller and smaller in the pale blue sky. Once they were out of sight, her shoulders slumped and she sniffed quietly.

Specter nudged her gently, letting out a soft whistle. "I'm still here, Weiss. Don't feel lonely."

Weiss wrapped her arms around her dragon's neck, hugging him tightly and allowing a few tears to fall on his cold scales, where they quickly froze. Footsteps caused her to quickly wipe her face. She saw it was Taiyang, Ruby, Yang, and Qrow approaching, followed by their dragons.

"Yeah, yeah, Tai," Qrow grumbled. "I don't need you to mommy me. We'll just stick around until Salty's all healed up."

" _You_ need to be healed as well, Qrow!" Taiyang scolded. "Don't think I haven't noticed how wobbly you've been on your feet."

"Hey, Weiss!" Ruby zipped over, hugging her teammate. "Did Winter leave already? I wanted to say bye."

"She did," Weiss said, glad that her voice didn't tremble. "She may be at the Dragon Festival, so we can look forward to that." She glanced at Qrow. "I never did find out why you two don't get along."

Qrow snorted. "Isn't it obvious by looking at us?"

"Not really," Taiyang commented. "Weiss and Ruby are quite different, yet they're close friends."

"Weiss is way less of a stuck-up priss than Winter, and Ruby's way less of a drunk than me," Qrow said dryly. "There are differences here, Tai."

"My sister is _not_ a stuck-up priss," Weiss huffed, putting her hands on her hips. "She simply takes herself and her position very seriously, as she should!" She smiled when Specter nodded his head sharply and whistled his clear agreement.

Salty suppressed a laugh at how the young ice dragon was trying to mimic his Rider's pose by angling his wings outward slightly and cocking his head. "It was very nice meeting you, Specter." Salty then turned to Fang and Storm. "And you. It's too bad I didn't get to see much of Pit."

Storm sighed. "He told me that Blake was trying not to intrude on Ruby and Yang's family time. I don't get it, though. She wouldn't have been intruding."

"People sometimes worry about things they don't need to worry about," Quake explained. "And they can think less of themselves than they should. Dragons have that problem too."

Tempest leaned down to nuzzle both Storm and Fang. "You take good care of Ruby and Yang. Understand?"

"We will!" Storm promised, running forward to press her head against the older wind dragon's shoulder. "Come visit anytime!"

"Of course," Tempest said, gently nudging the top of Storm's head. She turned to Ruby and Yang, a lump rising in her throat. "Rrroo, Ang," she rumbled in the human tongue. "Safe. Gud."

Ruby and Yang hugged the wind dragon around the neck, and were lifted off the ground by her strong forelegs as she hugged back. They then hugged Quake, who rumbled gently and shoved each of them playfully with his broad snout as they backed away.

"Take care," Ruby sniffled, wiping tears from her eyes. "I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Rrroo," Tempest sighed. She hated leaving the small human, but felt better about it this time than before. _She has Storm now. She doesn't need me looking after her._ She nuzzled Ruby once more before turning away.

Taiyang hugged his girls one more time, then gave Weiss a hug. "It was great meeting you, Weiss. If you want to visit during summer break, just let me know. We always have room."

Weiss stiffened only briefly before hugging back. She noticed Taiyang's backpack wriggling. "Thank you, sir. May I say goodbye to Zwei?"

"Ah! Of course." Taiyang unzipped his backpack.

Zwei immediately popped his head out, yipping cheerfully and licking Weiss's hand as she scratched his ears.

"Oh, I'm going to miss you so much!" Weiss cooed. "You be a good boy, okay?"

Zwei whined, pressing his head against her hand.

Taiyang chuckled. "Tell you what? If I need to go on any missions, I'll send him here. Oz said that it won't be a problem. How's that sound?"

Weiss's eyes lit up. "That sounds wonderful!"

Zwei growled sullenly as he was pushed back into the bag, but was quiet when Taiyang climbed onto Quake.

Qrow ruffled Ruby and Yang's hair. "If I go soft and die because of Tai's constant worrying, I'll expect you guys to sue on my behalf."

Yang rolled her eyes. "Just get better, and stop taking stupid risks."

"Oh jeez, you really are starting to take after him!" Qrow groaned. "I'd better go before I start seeing double!" He climbed onto Salty's back.

Salty rolled his eyes at his partner before licking both Ruby and Yang's cheeks. "Rrrow dum," he muttered, causing the girls to giggle.

"I heard that, you snarky sea serpent!" Qrow snapped, giving his dragon an affectionate pat on the neck.

"Good alliteration," Weiss commented.

"Be good, girls!" Taiyang called. "Remember to keep me updated!"

"We will!" Ruby waved. "Bye!" Her breath hitched when Tempest gave her one last sad look before taking off. Her shoulders trembled minutely once the dragons were out of sight. "Poor Tempest. Maybe we can convince Dad to let her stay here."

"With you here, Tempest is the only thing Dad's got to remind him of Summer," Yang reminded her. "Let's let him have that."

"You're right," Ruby sighed. She smiled when Storm nudged her shoulder and warbled gently. "Come on. Let's find Blake. We should exercise the dragons before it gets too cold.

…..

As Ren approached Ao Guang's stall, he could hear the excitable water dragon bouncing around inside. When he got closer, there was an insistent bark. "I'm coming, I'm coming," Ren chuckled as he undid the lock.

Immediately, he was tackled into the snow. Guang licked his Rider's face eagerly, planting his large paws on either side of Ren's body.

Ren sputtered and batted at his dragon, laughing as he was finally allowed to sit up. "I know yesterday was stressful. Things will get back to normal now."

Truthfully, Ren was relieved that Yule was over. Spending it with his friends and Jaune's family had been wonderful, but there was just too much pressure involved with all the socializing, gift giving, and so forth. He was content to just be with his dragon and his friends, living from one day to the next.

Of course, reminders of the previous day were everywhere. Team CRDL had been absent from breakfast, and people were already whispering about Tornado's attack on Jenny. Most people expected to see gun-toting Council representatives storming the school grounds within a day or so.

 _Speak of the devil,_ Ren thought as he led Ao Guang toward the field. He could see Sky walking Tornado through the frosted grass.

Another figure, one that Ren quickly recognized as Glynda Goodwitch, approached Sky. Tornado hissed. The professor said something. Sky's shoulders slumped and he put a hand on his dragon's neck. After a moment, both he and Glynda led Tornado back to the stalls.

Ao Guang chirped nervously, taking a step back. He didn't want to risk the scary wind dragon seeing him.

"Easy, boy," Ren muttered. Against his better judgement, he stayed where he was until Sky appeared on the path back to the school. "Sky!' he called.

Sky jumped, his eyes wide and a guilty look on his face. That expression turned even more pained when he saw who it was. He looked around, as if seeking an escape, then let out a sigh. "Just get it over with."

Ren frowned. "Get what over with?"

"You're gonna beat me up, right?" Sky asked. "Or have your dragon drench me so I'll be frozen by the time I get back to the dorms."

"I'd never do that!" Ren said, narrowing his eyes. "I don't use my dragon to attack people."

Sky winced. "I…" He looked up at Ren, and Ren was surprised to see tears spilling down his cheeks. "I didn't tell Tornado to attack that girl!"

Ren was taken aback. "I never thought you did," he said, surprised when he realized that was true. Despite the many things Team CRDL had done, the only one Ren could imagine hurting a child was Cardin, and even then, it would likely be the result of a prank gone horribly wrong.

Sky's shoulders relaxed. "Tell Jaune, okay? I don't like him, but I didn't want his sister hurt."

"Why don't you like him?" Ren wondered. "Why don't you like any of us?"

"Because you're a bunch of hippies who would rather coddle your deformed dragons than learn to fight with them! Because you're harboring a runt that will only make the rest of Beacon look bad and get itself killed in battle."

Ren felt a hot bubble of anger inside him, which he tried to control. "Twiggy may be small, but she's one of the finest dragons I've ever seen. And don't be so quick to talk about our 'deformed dragons.' Tornado may be physically fit, but no one can pretend he's a normal dragon anymore!"

Sky stiffened abruptly, his mouth turning into a thin line. His eyes narrowed and he clenched his fists. Ren realized after a moment that the Wind Rider was trying to keep from bursting into tears and was immediately ashamed of his outburst. _I can't lower myself to their level like that, not when there's a real danger of Tornado actually dying… That was a terrible thing to say._

It was Ao Guang who stepped forward, touching his muzzle to Sky's shoulder, purring gently. "You're not a bad one. I can tell," he said, even though he knew the human wouldn't understand. He still remembered Sky's aloof, but not unfriendly attitude during their day training together. It was Tornado who was crazy.

Sky made a hiccupping noise before wrapping a shaky arm around Guang's neck. "Hey, gum-gills," he sniffled. "You're okay, you know that?"

The corner of Ren's mouth twitched. He could imagine Team CRDL taunting Guang with a name like "gum-gills," but Sky sounded purely affectionate when he said it. He watched his dragon comfort the other teen before asking: "What was Professor Goodwitch talking to you about?"

"Saw that, huh?" Sky muttered. "She told me to put Tornado back in his stall. He has to stay there till the Council examines him."

Ren's heart dropped. "Then what?"

"Then, he'll either be ruled as okay to continue training, a candidate to be retired to a broodery, or…or…" He wrapped both arms tighter around Ao Guang's neck, letting out a sob. "My parents… They want to just have him culled without bothering with an inspection…so I can get a 'better' dragon. I don't want a better dragon! Tornado's aggressive and has a short attention span, but he's mine!"

Ren walked over, placing a gentle hand on Sky's back. "Two of those options end with Tornado being alive," he soothed. "Even if he's sent to a broodery, you can visit him whenever you want. The Council surely won't bar you from that."

"My parents…"

"Are wrong," Ren finished. "There is no better dragon for you than Tornado, because he is your dragon. That's that."

Sky took a shuddering breath and nodded. After a moment, he quickly took a step back from Ao Guang, looking around with a suddenly frantic look on his face. He ran his arm over his eyes and straightened up. "Um, don't tell anyone about me falling apart just now, okay?"

"If that's what you want," Ren said, his brows creasing with sympathy. _Doesn't think he's allowed to show emotions… Parents who don't care about his dragon… And his reasons for hating us honestly sounded like something he was reciting._ Usually, his pity for the members of Team CRDL was reserved wholly for poor Mudslide, but now he started wondering just how unfortunate the human Riders were.

"But, tell Jaune what I told you," Sky continued. "You know, that Tornado was just messed up yesterday. Yeah… It was just a mess-up. The Council will see that, right?" His grin was too big and edged with desperation. "I gotta go. I need to…I need to get a muzzle for…" His lip trembled again, and he quickly walked away.

Ao Guang let out a low, worried growl as he looked at Ren. _Muzzle? Muzzles are parts of our bodies… Why does Tornado need another one? And…what was that about him being "culled?"_ He had heard the word spoken before, but always in hushed tones, and never when he or another dragon was standing close by. _Two options…alive…_

His eyes widened as a horrible realization hit him. Was Tornado going to die? He looked down at Ren, barking and whimpering, wishing he could somehow talk to his Rider.

Ren jumped a little, then placed a hand on Ao Guang's shoulder. "Easy, Guang. There's nothing we can do. Ozpin will do what he can to help Tornado."

Ao Guang immediately relaxed. If Ragnar's Rider was taking care of things, there was nothing to worry about. Tornado would be okay, and remain as bad-tempered as ever. _Or maybe Ozpin will help him be less mean! That would be nice, especially for Sky._ By the time he and Ren reached the field, his worries were all but forgotten.

…

Jaune woke up early to see his family off. Originally, the Arcs had planned on staying later, but Tornado's attack had left Silvia deeply disturbed. She barely spoke when Jaune held her while they waited for the airship. "I'm gonna miss you," he murmured.

Silvia gripped his shirt, but didn't say anything.

"Will you come back and visit soon?" His heart shattered when she shook her head. "Why not?"

The toddler sniffled. "Too scary. Come home with me."

"I can't, kiddo," Jaune said, kissing her cheek. "I'm going to be a Dragon Rider. I'll be saving people from Grimm and bad guys. Isn't that cool?"

Silvia shook her head. "Home."

Jaune's shoulders slumped as he handed Silvia back to their mom. "Will you write to me, at least?"

Silvia shook her head. "Can't write good," she mumbled. "I'll draw a picture instead."

Jaune smiled. "You always draw the best pictures."

This elicited a tiny smile.

Jenny tugged on Jaune's coat. "Jaune? Say goodbye to Twiggy for me, okay?" Due to Silvia's presence, Jaune had left his dragon in her stall.

"I will," Jaune promised. "Are you doing okay?"

"Yeah!" Jenny grinned. "I can't wait to tell everyone I was attacked by a dragon!"

Joan glared sternly. "You will do no such thing. What happened yesterday isn't a laughing matter." She looked at Jaune. "Be careful, sweetie. Take good care of Twiggy."

"I will, Mom," Jaune promised. He ruffled Katie's hair when she moved closer to him. "Hey, Kate. You'll come visit Twiggy and me, right?"

"Yes!" Katie said excitedly. "You can teach me to ride her when she's bigger."

"I sure will!"

The airship arrived then, and Jaune hugged his mother and younger sisters in turn. "Bye, Mom," he murmured.

"Goodbye, Jaune," Joan replied. "Talk to your father before he leaves, will you? He really didn't mean to insult Twiggy yesterday. He was just upset."

"I know." Jaune stepped back. "See you!"

He watched the four get onto the airship, his stomach feeling like there was a rock lodged at the very bottom. _Mom's a lot more freaked out than she's letting on. And Silvia… This is such a mess._ He wanted nothing more than to cuddle with Twiggy in her stall, but he forced himself toward the arena to find his dad.

As predicted, Johann was tacking up Ignis for the journey home. The fire dragon noticed Jaune and let out a happy warble. "Awn!"

Johann turned around, his expression unreadable. "Did your mother leave?"

"Just now," Jaune replied, waiting for his dad to make the first move.

There was a tense moment before Ignis let out an annoyed huff and shoved his partner forward. Johann stumbled, cast a glare over his shoulder, then straightened up. "Look, Jaune. About yesterday-"

"I know you were scared," Jaune said, forcing his voice to sound neutral, even though he was actually still angry. "It's fine. You didn't mean it."

"I did, though," Johann said. "That's the problem. The dragons…there's something very wrong, Jaune. I don't want to see you get hurt just because-"

"Because I got stuck with a useless runt?" Jaune snapped.

Johann winced. "That's not…" He looked away. "I'm sorry I said that, Jaune. Twiggy is a good dragon. I saw how eager she was to protect Jenny. I just hope…I hope that being a good dragon will be enough. If the Council…" He looked back at his son, his eyes full of pain. "I don't want you to have to lose her."

Jaune's anger immediately faded, and was replaced with shame. Of course, his father didn't hate Twiggy. He just didn't want his son to be a victim of the Council, as Sky was likely going to be. "I won't, Dad," he vowed. "I won't let anyone take her away."

"I know," Johann muttered. "That's what I'm afraid of." He pulled his son into a hug. "Keep your head down, and learn as much as you can. Whatever happens, I'm proud of you and Twiggy. Understand?"

Jaune felt a lump rising in his throat. "Yeah," he managed to choke out.

Ignis nudged Jaune once Johann let go, shoving the boy to the ground. Brazier and the others also took turns nuzzling him once they were tacked up.

Jaune, Johann, Mary, Sapphire, Autumn, and June walked to the courtyard together, this time with Twiggy tagging along.

"You'll come back soon, right?" the dragonet chirped, looking at the others with wide eyes.

"Of course, kid!" Ignis grinned. "You look after Jaune for us, okay?"

"I will!" Twiggy promised. She looked around, realizing something was missing. "Where are the little ones?"

Brazier cooed sadly. "They left already. Silvia was too afraid after yesterday."

Twiggy sighed. "Will you protect them for me?"

"Absolutely!" Flurry declared. "We'll keep them all safe! You just focus on growing big and strong, okay?"

Twiggy puffed her chest out, trying to look as big as possible. "I will!"

Jaune watched his family leave, only allowing the tears to fall once they were out of sight. "Why is everything so messed up, Twiggy?" he mumbled, wiping his eyes on his coat.

Twiggy whined, licking the tears from Jaune's cheeks and wrapping a wing around him to shield him from the cold. She, of course, couldn't answer his question. She didn't even fully understand what he meant. All she knew was that she was supposed to take care of her Rider.

She wouldn't break her promise.

…..

Tornado thrashed on the ground, clawing at the leather thing that surrounded his muzzle and kept it from opening fully. He hissed and spat and howled. When Sky came close, he lashed out with his claws. "SKY HURT! SKY HURT MOUTH! BAD SKY!"

Sky was sobbing as he backed against the door. "I'm sorry, Tornado! I had to! Please calm down!" He yelped when his dragon responded by headbutting him against the wall. The air left his lungs and he collapsed, trembling and holding his midsection as tears squeezed past his eyes.

Immediately, Tornado froze. "Hurt Sky… Protect Sky…" He crouched down, the bindings momentarily forgotten, and nudged his partner's shoulder. "Hurt Sky…"

Sky sat up, still gasping, and slumped against his dragon's leg. "I know," he gasped. "Just… Please… Behave tomorrow… Please…" His breaths rattled as he closed his eyes.

Tornado lay down next to his Rider, gently licking the human's face. "Good Sky. Sleep Sky."

In the next stall, Mudslide sat alone on her bed, shaking. No one had taken her out today, and Tornado sounded worse than usual. What was going on? She hated being helpless.

 _Cardin will make it better,_ she told herself. _Once Cardin comes back…everything will be fine._ She placed her head on her paws and fell asleep, her brother's screams still ringing in her brain.

 **Jeez, Solora. Cheer up, why don't you?**

 **In my defense, I'm throwing a fluff bomb at you guys on Friday. I know how to balance things!**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun**

 **Peace out!**


	59. Harsh Realities

**RAWR, everybody! Ready for more character development and angst? Of course, you are! That's why you're still here.**

 **Also, it has been brought to my attention that I have yet to recommend the** _ **Temeraire**_ **series by Naomi Novik. That was a gross oversight on my part, as this book series is freaking amazing. Basically, it's a fantasy/alternate historical story taking place during the Napoleonic Wars, where there's a division of the military consisting of aviators who ride talking, sentient dragons. The different dragon breeds are well thought out, and the series brings up several questions concerning the power imbalance between humans and dragons in a dragon/rider relationship, especially in a human-dominated society. You'll probably notice several themes from** _ **Temeraire**_ **showing up in this fic.**

 **Enjoy!**

"No, Ruby," Weiss said flatly as Team RWBY made its way to the cafeteria for breakfast.

"But why?" Ruby whined. "It's the first day of the second semester. We should make it memorable."

"Starting a food fight is not the way to make something memorable," Weiss huffed.

"I dunno," Yang piped up. "I'd definitely remember it!"

"Ugh… Blake, please back me up."

Blake had a book in her hands and was paying half of her attention to it, half to where she was putting her feet. "I am an innocent bystander in all of this. No one can blame me for anything."

"Well, you're no help," Weiss muttered.

"Just wait," Ruby insisted. "The guys will love this!"

When they got to the cafeteria, however, thoughts of a food fight were immediately forgotten. Team JNPR was sitting at their usual table, muttering quietly to each other, looking incredibly worried and subdued. They looked up as Team RWBY approached, their eyes troubled.

"What's wrong?" Ruby asked as she sat down next to Jaune.

"Tornado's been muzzled," Jaune explained. "Ren ran into Sky yesterday and found out. I guess the Council will be here either today or tomorrow."

"Muzzled!" Ruby gasped. "Oh no… Do you think they'll still be in class today?"

"It's doubtful," Weiss speculated. "If they think he's dangerous enough to muzzle, they won't want him mingling with other dragons, at least not until there's a verdict on his behavior."

Ruby stared at the table, suddenly not hungry at all. "Think there's anything we can do?"

"I don't think so," Pyrrha admitted reluctantly. "We cannot force the Council to decide one way or another. And…after what happened with Jenny, they have every right to be concerned."

"He apologized for it," Jaune muttered. "Sky wanted me to know he didn't tell Tornado to do that."

"Of course, he didn't," Nora snorted, rolling her eyes. "I mean, Team CRDL may be bullies, but they aren't, you know, _evil_."

"Honestly, it feels like Cardin is the only bully left," Blake remarked, peering over her book. "Dove has been somewhat pleasant since the dragon switch, and when was the last time Sky or Russel specifically targeted any of us?"

"I spoke with Velvet recently," Weiss said, suddenly remembering. "She told me that Team CRDL has been mostly leaving her alone. The most she gets now are shouted insults, always from Cardin."

"Looks like they're finally realizing how stupid they've been," Jaune said. "Or, they're just getting bored."

"Or they realized no one likes them because of how jerky they are," Nora added.

"Or that," Jaune allowed. "Hey, maybe _Cardin_ got nicer over the break!"

There was a sudden, familiar shout from the entry to the cafeteria. "Outta my way, monkey boy!"

"Or, he could still be a bigoted idiot," Yang growled, standing up and turning toward the wide entryway, where Teams CRDL and SSSN were facing each other. Cardin was bristling, holding up a threatening fist. Sun was giving him a bored glare, his tail swishing back and forth.

As Yang got closer, followed by Blake and Pyrrha, she saw Neptune taking a step toward Cardin.

"Hey! Don't talk to him like that!" Neptune growled, his eyes flashing.

Cardin smirked. "Got a problem, fag?"

Neptune's face flushed a deep red, and his fists clenched.

Sun's tail stopped swishing and his gray eyes turned stormy with rage. "What did you just call him?!"

Dove winced, taking a step back. "Cardin," he muttered in a strained voice. "That's enough."

"Don't tell me vacation made you soft," Cardin snorted. "Come on, let's remind these Faunus-lovers who's in charge here. Whaddaya say?"

Yang felt her rage simmering as she looked at Russel and Dove, who both looked more unsure than she'd ever seen them. Then, for the first time, she realized that Sky wasn't with them. Russel met her gaze, and balked even further.

"Aw, fuck this," he muttered, turning abruptly and walking toward the breakfast line.

"Russel! Get back here!" Cardin snapped. "Wuss." He looked at Dove. "Are you gonna wimp out too?"

Dove looked at Cardin, then at Team SSSN and the girls. He took a step back, shaking his head. "Give it a rest," he muttered.

Cardin's eyes narrowed. "I really am running a team of losers," he snapped, shoving Dove against the doorframe as he stomped away.

The tension eased once Cardin was gone, though Neptune was still red-faced, and Sun looked like he was contemplating following the bully and pummeling him to the ground. Yang glanced at Blake and Pyrrha, who both looked relieved that a fight hadn't broken out after all.

"You guys okay?" she asked.

"Yeah," Sun said, glancing at Neptune. "Thanks, man."

Neptune smiled shakily. "No problem." He looked at the girls. "Cardin bumped into Sun. I think he was looking for a fight."

"He was," Dove affirmed. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's cool, dude," Sun said, regaining his easy grin almost immediately. He inclined his head toward their table, inviting Dove to join them. "It wasn't your fault. Do I detect some independence coming from you and Russel?"

"Kinda." Dove glanced to the side, his expression troubled as they approached the table. "Cardin got back last night. He didn't ask how Mudslide was doing, or even thank us for looking after her. And…" He glanced around. "You guys know Tornado's being checked by the Council, right?"

"We know," Ren affirmed, scooting his chair over to make more room.

"Well, Cardin said that it'll be a good thing when Tornado's culled," Dove muttered. "He said Tornado's a liability, and that he's looking forward to having a 'non-retarded' wind dragon on the team."

Everyone gasped.

"That's- He's-" Ruby clenched her fists. "I hate him so much!"

"How did no one break his nose?" Yang asked, dumbstruck. "Especially Sky."

"Russel almost hit him," Dove admitted. "Sky wasn't there. I'm pretty sure he spent the night in Tornado's stall."

"We should check on them before class," Ruby said, to which the others nodded in agreement.

Dove stared at all of them. "Why do you care so much? We've been terrible to you guys, and Tornado probably caused more injuries to you and your dragons than even Mudslide."

"We have compassion for other people and dragons," Ren said, a hint of scolding in his voice. "Tornado is unstable and angry, but we don't want him to die."

"And no one should go through the pain of losing their dragon," Weiss insisted.

Dove stared at his lunch, thinking back to all the previous fights Team CRDL had had with their fellow students, deeply ashamed. "Thanks," he muttered.

Pyrrha noticed someone standing behind her, and turned to see Russel hovering nearby, clearly listening to their conversation. When he saw her looking, he quickly walked away, setting his tray down at an empty table in the corner.

…

Ruby was gloomy and deep in thought that night as she took Storm from her stall. She had gotten an email from Ozpin saying that they were going to resume their lessons with Penny. It was hard to concentrate on anything, however. All she could think about was poor Tornado.

She had seen Sky only briefly after breakfast, when she and the others went to get their dragons. The wind Rider had been battered and bruised, as if his dragon had beaten him during the night, and didn't even seem to notice the others when they asked if he was okay. In the end, Dove had led his friend to the dorm rooms, asking Yang, Sun, and Pyrrha to tell Port that he'd be a little late to class.

Storm, sensing her partner's disquiet, nudged Ruby's arm gently. _Guang told me something's wrong with Tornado. Is that why Ruby's sad?_ She perked up when she realized where they were going. _We're seeing Penny! I can just ask Ruby myself!_

Ozpin and Ragnar both looked incredibly tired, but both managed a cheerful greeting as their students approached.

"Ragnar!" Storm bounded over. "What's wrong with Tornado?"

Ragnar let out a sad rumble. "He is in danger. Because he attacked that child, the Council will have to determine whether he's allowed to live or not."

Storm balked, her fins drooping. "He…He might die?" She thought of all the conversations she'd overheard, of that word that seemed to make the Riders so anxious. "Culled." Was that what it meant?

Ragnar nodded, hating that he couldn't say something comforting, but knowing that an attempt at comfort would be little more than a lie. "That's the way things are."

Storm whined, shaking her head. "He's a bully, but I don't want him to die!"

"Neither do I, Storm. Neither do I. I'd save him myself if I could. If the Council decides to kill him, I'll need to be restrained with all the others."

"Restrained?"

Ragnar nodded. "In the rational state I usually am in, I know there is nothing that can be done, nothing that wouldn't make things worse overall for everyone here. However, we dragons lose all reason in the face of an immediate threat to us or a loved one. I will fight to the death for all of my students. It's Ozpin's job to keep me alive if a culling is ordered. If I'm loose, I will kill the humans with the guns, regardless of consequence, which will lead to my own death and Ozpin's arrest."

Storm trembled. "Will I be restrained too?"

"Every dragon here will be," Ragnar affirmed, bowing his head. "It is…for the best."

Ozpin approached Ruby, a gentle, understanding look in his eyes. "You're worried."

"Of course, I am!" Ruby said. "Do you think the Council will let him live?"

"It's hard to be sure," Ozpin sighed. "I have some brooderies in mind. It's doubtful that the Council will deem Tornado safe, but I can try to get them to let him retire peacefully."

 _At least he wouldn't die…_ "What about Sky? You know, he and the others haven't been bullying anyone lately. It's only been Cardin."

"I know, Miss Rose. If Tornado is culled or sent away, I'll allow Sky to remain here," Ozpin said. "I'll offer him the chance to work as a stable hand on the property for the rest of the semester, and summer if he chooses. His tuition will be refunded, and he'll be allowed to enroll at the start of the next year and bond to another dragon. If he doesn't enroll, I'll offer to let him keep working and living here."

"That's good," Ruby muttered. It was a relief that Ozpin still planned to take care of his students, even if they stopped being his students, though a disturbing thought occurred to her: _How many of the stable hands are people who lost their dragons?_

"Now, then," Ozpin continued. "Let us see how Penny adjusts to Storm's growth over the holidays. We'll need to start practicing some maneuvers, too. The Festival will be here before we know it."

The Dragon Festival was always at the beginning of March, after the snows of winter were good and melted. Ruby had honestly almost forgotten about it in the face of Yule, Qrow's injury, and Tornado's impending Council inspection.

Storm turned to Ozpin, saw the familiar metal plate, and nudged the human's arm eagerly.

Ozpin chuckled. "Okay, Storm. Let's get started." He placed the plate on the dragon's brow.

The yellow light came on, blinking rapidly. "Detecting significant maturation in assigned dragon. Adjusting settings." A few more blinks, then the plate spread out to cover Storm's brow, then spread down her back and legs like armor. Storm's head turned toward Ruby. "Rider recognized. Salutations, Ruby Rose."

"Hi, Penny! How are you?" Ruby asked.

"I am well, though I detect a significant amount of time between this interaction and the previous one."

"That's because of Yule. We were on a holiday," Ruby explained.

"Holiday. Definition: a day of festivity or recreation where no work is done." The light, which was green now, blinked once. "I was not aware I was on a holiday."

"That's probably because you were turned off," Ruby pointed out.

"Yes. Yes, of course." The light glowed steadily. "What do you wish to do today, Ruby? Before you answer, Storm wants me to tell you that she would like to speak with you."

"Let us focus on practicing the exercises that will be required for the unveiling," Ozpin said before Ruby could answer. "You may speak at the end."

"Awaiting Rider command," Penny said.

"We'll do as Ozpin says," Ruby ordered. "Thanks, Penny."

"You are welcome."

For the next hour, Storm and Penny did a series of maneuvers, including the strongest wind gust yet. Storm was told to surrender control to Penny, who was able to move her body and react to attacks from Ragnar easily. For the final test, Penny helped Storm fly.

With the machine's energy pulsing through her, Storm bounded through the grass, her claws throwing snow into the air. Her large wings extended flawlessly, and she leaped into the air. She felt the cold breath of winter under the membranes and bones, pushing her higher and higher. Her jaws parted, and she let out a roar of joy. Everything was perfect. This was what she was meant to do! How had she gone so long without flying?

She did one lap before Penny gently urged her to land, reminding her not to overexert herself. _Right. Thanks, Penny._

 _You are welcome,_ the kind voice replied. _This is enjoyable. Will you fly with me again next time?_

 _Of course, I will._ Storm looked for a spot to land. _Penny, what do you do when you're not on my head?_

There was a pause, and a feeling like an electric tremor went through Storm's brain. _I…do not…know…_

For a moment, Storm couldn't feel Penny's presence, and faltered a little in the air. This caused her to stumble as she landed, scuffing her front paws on the ground. She yelped, falling forward.

"Storm!" Ruby rushed over, kneeling at her dragon's side. She saw Penny's light blinking yellow and green alternatively. "Are you okay?"

Storm sat up with a groan and nuzzled Ruby comfortingly. She felt a tingle in her skull as Penny returned.

"My apologies," the unit said. "There was an unidentified error, and I went temporarily offline."

Ozpin was frowning. "Perhaps, that's enough for today."

Storm let out a frantic bark, shaking her head.

"Storm still wishes to speak with you, Ruby," Penny explained. "Requesting permission to be Storm's voice."

Ruby glanced at Ozpin, who reluctantly nodded. "Go ahead."

The light turned green and Penny's voice became more expressive. "Ruby! Did you see me fly?"

"I saw," Ruby said, her heart warming as she scratched under her dragon's chin. "I'm so proud of you! You could've beaten Nimbus!"

"Yeah, but he's still the best. He does his stuff without Penny, and with his bad eyes." Storm hesitated. "Can you protect Tornado?"

Ruby's throat closed up, and she shook her head. "No, Storm," she choked out. "Whatever happens, we can't do anything. Ozpin will do all he can."

Ozpin shifted, exchanging a quick glance with Ragnar. "I'll do what I can, but I can make no promises."

Storm's fins drooped. "I thought humans are supposed to be our friends. Why would these Council humans kill a dragon?"

"It's because he attacked Jenny," Ruby explained. "And they might decide he's too dangerous."

"Cardin hurts Mudslide," Storm pointed out. "Will the Council decide he's too dangerous and kill him?"

Ruby's brows furrowed, her stomach churning as she forced out an answer. "No, Storm. Humans…Humans don't get culled like that. Or Faunus."

"But dragons do?" Storm shook her head. "I don't…understand."

"I hate it too, Storm," Ruby assured her. "And so does Ozpin. The problem is that there are people more powerful than us, and they make the decisions."

"People, but not dragons," Storm guessed, letting out a sigh. "I'm done talking now." The light turned yellow, then green again.

"Awaiting your command."

"Detach," Ruby said, her voice hollow. "Thanks, Penny."

"You're welcome. Executing." The light went off as the armor retreated until there was just a metal plate, which fell into Ozpin's outstretched hand.

Ozpin gave the plate a long look. "It looks like the device starts to malfunction when asked to do too many tasks," he muttered. "It's good that we know this ahead of time." He looked at Ruby, managing a smile. "Thank you, Miss Rose. Storm. You may go. Try not to worry about Tornado. I promise to do all I can." Judging by the slumped shoulders and dejected pace of the girl and dragon, he knew that his words held no comfort.

Ragnar rumbled softly. "Ssscared."

"So am I, my friend." Ozpin put the device back into its box. "So am I."

Storm and Ruby were quiet as they walked back to the stall. Outside the door, however, Ruby turned and hugged her dragon.

"I'm sorry, Storm," she said, tears in her voice. "I'm sorry the world isn't fair. I'm sorry I can't change it right now." She sniffed. "But that's why we're becoming Riders. When we're strong, people will listen to us, and we can change things and make them better. We just need to keep fighting."

Storm wrapped her wings around Ruby. _Ruby's crying!_ She whimpered at the sound. _I don't blame you, Ruby! It's not your fault! Don't cry!_ She held her Rider until the tears stopped, then licked her face for good measure.

Once she was settled in her stall, Storm curled up on her bed. Ruby's words had comforted her a little. It made sense that they'd be able to do more once they were older and stronger.

 _But people like Ozpin, Ragnar, Qrow, Salty, Taiyang, Quake, and Tempest are already grown-up and strong,_ she thought. _So, shouldn't things already be better?_ She looked at her shuttered window, in the direction of Tornado's stall. _And Tornado's in danger now. Us growing up later won't do any good for him._

She rolled onto her side, trying to sleep, wishing she could go back to a few months ago, when she and the others still lived near their Riders' beds, when all she had to worry about was listening to Gust during lessons, and avoiding Team CRDL the rest of the time.

 **Our little dragonets are growing up and learning the unfair ways of the world. It had to happen sooner or later.**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	60. Scoping the Stables

**RAWR, everybody! Today, I'm giving you a nice chapter because I'm a nice writer who types nice things for my readers and does NOT drink their tears for breakfast every morning.**

 **Enjoy!**

Jaune was walking through one of the stone hallways that made up one of the many earth barns of Beacon. The floor was dirt, except for the stalls, which had wooden floors covered with sweet-smelling alfalfa. Earth dragons watched lazily as the young Rider passed them. A few sniffed him, noted the smell of a young earth dragon, and closed their eyes, anticipating the arrival of several youngsters in the coming week.

There were several empty stalls, which Jaune looked at carefully. He checked the dragons near these stalls, and was relieved to find that most of them had good temperaments. _That's good. No one looks like they'll bully Twiggy._

He didn't think Twiggy would be assigned to a stall close to Mudslide, either. He had specifically asked Ozpin about it, after all.

"Jaune?" a familiar voice called from the entrance. "Are you here?"

"Hey, Pyrrha!" Jaune replied. "Just scoping out Twiggy's future home."

"Well, you're in the wrong building," Pyrrha remarked as she walked over. "Twiggy's stall is in the next barn."

"How do you know?"

"The dragons' names are written next to the stall. See?" She pointed toward a nearby stall, which held a red-brown earth dragon with gentle brown eyes.

Jaune squinted, then saw a wooden name plate that had "Mocha" written on it. "Oh. How'd you catch that? It's really dark in here."

"Wranglers need good eyesight," Pyrrha said, her eyes glinting with amusement. "She's in a stall next to Zircon, and Mudslide is in a completely different building."

Jaune immediately relaxed. "That's all I needed to know. Have you checked out the fire stable yet?"

"I was just on my way there now."

The two walked in comfortable silence down the path to the barren, grass-less area around the stables for the fire dragons. As they drew closer, they saw several pairs of brightly-colored or smoky dragons battling each other. Jaune jumped back as an adult with sulfur-yellow scales spotted with a poisonous orange color was thrown to the ground a few yards away by a towering, gray-colored beast.

"I guess they gotta let out that pent-up aggression somehow," he muttered.

"I hope Titan will be able to handle it." Pyrrha winced when a maroon and black dragon breathed a stream of fire at its opponent. "He still hasn't shown any sign of having fire abilities."

"He'll be fine," Jaune assured her. "He's a fighter, just like his partner."

Pyrrha smiled, her cheeks flushing a little. "True. And I'm sure Huo and Fang will back him up if anyone tries picking on him."

They went through the barns, eventually finding Titan's stall. On its right was an empty stall of an older dragon named Magma. On its left was Tank's future stall.

"A few months ago, I would have been very concerned," Pyrrha admitted. "But I honestly don't think we need to worry about anyone but Cardin and Mudslide giving us trouble anymore."

"You think?" Jaune asked. "I mean, Dove and Tank I get, and Sky seems to have woken up a bit after Tornado's attack. I can see him taking more control of him if the Council…well…" He trailed off. "But do you really think Russel and Barracuda are going to stop being jerks?"

"After Cardin's earlier behavior, definitely," Pyrrha said. "Russel loves his dragon, and that at least gives him a good starting point. Since he's distancing himself from Cardin, I think he'll become a bit more compassionate over time."

"Let's hope." Jaune breathed a sigh. "I still feel bad for Mudslide and Tornado, though."

"So do I, but Ozpin is their best hope right now." Pyrrha placed a gentle hand on Jaune's arm. "Why don't we take Twiggy and Titan for a walk?"

"Sounds good to me! They're probably getting antsy now that they've almost outgrown their stalls."

Sure enough, Twiggy nearly knocked down the door when Jaune opened it a few minutes later. She spun around in the snow, rolling on her back happily. "Ugh, finally! I need to run! It feels like we haven't really gotten to play in weeks!"

Titan was much calmer, though he walked out at a very brisk pace. "I'm glad all the extra humans and dragons went home. Much less noise," he commented. "Though, I still wish I could have kept the one little Jaune girl."

"Maybe Pyrrha can get you a dog," Twiggy suggested. "I think that's what that little furry thing Ruby and Yang's dad brought was called."

"Too small. I wouldn't want to step on it by mistake."

Jaune kissed Twiggy's snout. "Hey, Twiggy. How's my best girl today?"

Twiggy purred, rubbing her head against Jaune's arm. Her purrs grew louder when Jaune started scratching her head just behind where her horns were starting to come in.

Pyrrha gently stroked Titan's muzzle. "Hello, Titan. Happy the holidays are over?"

Titan barked once, licking Pyrrha's cheek before looking hopefully toward the field.

Obligingly, the humans led their dragons toward the frost-coated grass, which Twiggy in particular crunched underfoot with relish. She ran ahead, bounding in great leaps, happy to finally have some room and time with just Jaune, Pyrrha, and her brother.

Jaune watched his dragon with a soft smile, feeling his love for the runty creature fill him anew as he looked at her bright silver eyes, which shined even more than the shimmering trees. "I'm glad my family liked her," he muttered to Pyrrha. "For the most part, anyway."

"Silvia will get over her fears," Pyrrha assured him. "She's still young. A lot of things change as you grow up."

"I hope…" Jaune hesitated. "Hey, Titan. Why don't you make sure Twiggy doesn't trip?"

Titan gave Jaune a puzzled look. Twiggy didn't trip over things that much anymore. Then, he noticed Jaune shifting closer to Pyrrha and understood. With a soft yip, he bounded over to Twiggy, playfully nudging her as he ran past.

"I don't want to upset them," Jaune said, lowering his voice even more as he looked fully at Pyrrha. "Dad's worried about Twiggy, Pyrrha. He thinks that her being a good dragon won't be enough for her to pass as a fighting dragon. What if the Council sees her when they come to inspect Tornado? What if they start really looking at all the freshman dragons?"

Pyrrha nodded slowly. "That has been worrying me." Just off the top of her head, she could think of the fireless Titan, Ao Guang with his closed gills, Freya's lethargy, Nimbus's eyes, Zircon's skittishness, and Barracuda's webless feet. Who knew how many other dragons there were with problems? "But, I'm sure they wouldn't have a mass culling. Imagine the bad publicity." She shuddered a little with disgust, hating that publicity was likely going to be the biggest deciding point, not the lives of so many dragons.

"Or, they might decide it's a better investment to just start everyone over." The thought made Jaune sick, but it was definitely a possibility. After learning about the purge of the hybrid elementals, it was hard to think that the Council had anything remotely resembling mercy.

"Ozpin won't let that happen," Pyrrha assured him. "I know how much he loves the dragons here."

"Do you think he'll stop them from killing Tornado, then?"

"I don't know if he can," Pyrrha admitted. "I was reading up on what happens when a dragonry dragon is culled, and there's a whole process involved. The dragon is muzzled and tranquilized, all the stables are locked, particularly the ones holding the professors' dragons, and the dragon is placed in a stall equipped with a lock with a special code."

Jaune gaped. "All that just to kill one dragon?" Why would anyone go to that much effort just to kill something that didn't deserve death in the first place?

"It didn't used to be that way, but there were several instances of dragons and Riders trying to free the dragon to be culled. There was one story I read about a student whose sister's dragon was set to be culled. They actually were able to escape, only to be shot down by police outside the dragonry. The girl, her dragon, and the boy's dragon were all killed."

"That's horrible," Jaune gasped. "What happened to the boy?"

"Escaped. No one knows where he is now. There was another story of a professor's dragon who acted on its own to try and save a student's dragon. Both ended up dead." Pyrrha watched her own dragon, brows furrowed. "I would hope that Ozpin would find a way to help his students if the Council decided on a mass culling, but I know he can't stop them if they decide to just kill one dragon."

"If he can't stop them from killing one dragon," Jaune reasoned. "He probably won't be able to stop a mass culling. They'd put up even more security measures for something like that."

Pyrrha's shoulders slumped. "Then, what can we do?"

"Start planning now," Jaune said. "And, if it looks like the Council is going to start sniffing around, we shouldn't wait for them to find something."

"Go rogue, then?" Pyrrha paled. "Before we've even learned how to ride?"

Jaune shrugged, even as he balked at how hopeless it sounded. "Would you do any less for Titan?"

Pyrrha looked at Titan, who was rolling on his back, acting as if Twiggy had successfully pinned him to the ground. "I'd do _anything_ for him." She turned to Jaune. "But, maybe we're panicking too much, too soon. The Council may inspect Tornado, decide his outburst was a fluke, and that his attitude will actually be beneficial for a fighting dragon. They may let him live, and leave on the same day."

"Yeah." Jaune felt a flicker of hope in response to Pyrrha's certainty. "Maybe you're right. Sorry if I was too dramatic."

"It's understandable," Pyrrha assured him. "We all love our dragons, and want to make sure they're safe."

"True." Jaune let out a laugh when he saw Titan tickling Twiggy with the tip of his tail. Twiggy was rolling on the ground, letting out loud huffs of laughter. "It's funny. Ever since she hatched, everything about my life has revolved around her. It hasn't even been a year, but I already can't imagine things being any different. I can't imagine not having her around."

"You're a true Dragon Rider," Pyrrha said, feeling deeply proud of her teammate's devotion. "The professors' dragons knew that when you first took the sight test."

Jaune thought back to that fateful day, when he had stood in the arena under the gaze of four mighty dragons. It had been like being exposed fully under the harshest of lights, lights that could somehow see through a person's skin, muscles, and bones. Nothing could have possibly come close to being as terrifying as those four dragons. Now, of course, those dragons were just as known and loved by Jaune as the professors who rode them.

"I just hope they were right," he sighed. "I hope I can be good enough."

Pyrrha reached out, gently taking Jaune's gloved hand in hers. "If it helps, you're the finest Rider I've ever met."

Jaune's cheeks warmed and he glanced to the side, though he didn't move his hand away. "Okay, now you're definitely lying to make me feel better."

Pyrrha squeezed his hand a little tighter, her eyes now hard and serious. "I never lie, Jaune."

"I know. I just…"

"Is the idea of you being a great Rider so hard to believe?"

Jaune shrugged as he looked back at her. He weaved his fingers through hers, taking some comfort in her firm grip. "I just have a lot to live up to, and there are so many things that could go wrong."

"Don't think about it," Pyrrha urged. "Just face each problem as it comes. If you dwell on every bad thing that could possibly happen, you'll drive yourself insane."

"You're right." Jaune allowed his smile to return. "You know, I'm really glad we're teammates. I'd probably be a wreck without you."

"Give yourself a little more credit," Pyrrha said, even as her cheeks flushed. "I'm glad too." She noticed that the dragons had stopped playing and were curled up on the ground. "Looks like they finally wore themselves out."

The two walked over, and Titan stretched out, inviting them to sit with their backs against his side. Once they were settled in, Twiggy padded over and placed her head on their laps. She was big enough now for a third of her head to be not on either of their laps.

Jaune stroked her brow, grunting a little at how heavy she was. "You are definitely not a lap dragon anymore!"

Twiggy chirped, not moving her head at all.

"Well, we're going to lose all feeling in our legs," Jaune sighed. "Sorry, Pyrrha. We'll have to call the others to carry us inside."

"I don't mind." Pyrrha gave Twiggy's snout a gentle pat as she listened to Titan's breathing. She shifted to get a bit more comfortable, pressing her side against Jaune's in the process. It was so easy to just rest her head on his shoulder. She closed her eyes and smiled as she felt his head come to a rest on top of hers.

They lay there for a while, the combined warmth of their dragons lulling them into a half-sleep despite the surrounding cold. Jaune nodded off at one point, drowsily nuzzling his cheek against the top of Pyrrha's head.

Eventually, Titan and Twiggy found themselves wanting their warm stalls, and stirred a bit to wake their Riders. Both humans groaned, stretching a little before trying to get feeling back in their legs.

Jaune glanced down at Pyrrha, and felt his heart thud at the sight of her flushed face and lazy smile. Later, he would blame his sleep-addled brain for what he said then. "Hey, Pyrrha? Can I kiss you?"

Pyrrha blinked, her own sleepy mind needing a bit more time to process what Jaune had just said. Then, her smile widened, and she nodded, closing her eyes.

Jaune leaned in, softly pressing his lips to hers, bringing one arm up to pull her just a little closer. There were no fireworks going off in his brain, no huge shock to his system. Honestly, with how close they'd come since their dragons hatched, with how easily they had snuggled together throughout the holidays, with how they could talk to each other about basically anything and never get bored, this felt like the natural next step. He felt her lips moving against his and smiled.

Pyrrha pressed eagerly against Jaune's chest, gladly returning his kiss with a gentle but firm response. In that moment, with the sound of their rumbling dragons surrounding them, nothing could go wrong.

When they pulled away, they looked at each other's flushed faces for a moment. Then, their attentions were drawn away by their dragons, who were staring openly at them. Twiggy's eyes were shining with excitement and Titan bobbed his head once, letting out a warble. Their tails thumped on the ground.

Jaune gaped, then burst out laughing. "Oh, Dust! Pyrrha, I think our dragons have been shipping us!"

Pyrrha stared at the excited dragons before letting out a laugh when Twiggy jumped up and started bouncing in a circle. "It would seem so."

Both teammates were in high spirits as they led their excited dragons back to their stalls. For the time being, it felt as if nothing could go wrong, as if the fear and anger of the past few days were just a bad dream that would rapidly fade away with the passage of time.

 **See that? Arkos! Aren't I such a nice person? Heh… *hides under a rock* I'll just be here next Tuesday. Just chilling, you know. Under this safe rock.**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while also earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	61. The Culling

**Yeah, I'm not even going to bother with an intro. I'm just going to be hiding under my rock.**

The Council came early the next morning. Within just a few hours, a specialized lock was placed on Tornado's stall. The muzzle was tightened. A sedative injection was prepared. The wind dragon would die that night. The Council never wasted time once a decision was made.

Ozpin, of course, begged and pleaded with them. "There are brooderies that will take him," he assured them, even as he tried to think of one that could handle a dragon like Tornado, and that hadn't already rejected him. "Just let me relocate him!"

"It's too dangerous to be placed in a broodery," the head representative said, his glare stern and pitiless. "You should have called us sooner. It would have meant less suffering for the creature's Rider."

Ozpin was helpless. All he could do was give the order to all students and professors to lock their dragons away, and then order them back to their rooms until an announcement was made.

Dragons were noble creatures with a clear sense of right and wrong. While they could be made to fight each other, it was always with reluctance, and never with a wish to kill. There were few exceptions to this.

Even Ragnar, the oldest and wisest of the dragons, lost all reason when he realized what was about to happen. He was calm and collected whenever he discussed culling, and when he talked about problems happening elsewhere. But he was a dragon, a professor's dragon, and Tornado was a dragonet, one of his students. All knowledge of the Council, of human laws, and of what would happen to him if he did what he wanted to do vanished.

He fought Ozpin every step of the way, howling and roaring and thumping the ground with his mighty tail. Ozpin fought back grimly, yanking on the rope on his halter. Ragnar could have tossed his Rider away, could have easily overpowered him, but his love for Ozpin kept him at bay. It was ultimately this that led to him being locked away in the earth stable, which was shut up with special metal doors that were only brought down during times like these.

The other professors suffered similar ordeals. Glynda, tears in her eyes, was forced to swat Nautilus's nose with her riding crop, battering his face as he backed away from her and let out long, mournful cries that echoed across the grounds.

Pepper actually hurt Peter Port a great deal as he forced her into the fire stable. She swatted him with large paws, leaving scratches on his skin that she would later lick clean. Now, however, she was full of rage and betrayal, unable to even vocalize human words. Any dragon near her, however, would hear the string of curses that left her mouth, hotter than any fire.

Gust put up the worst fight of all, flapping her wings like a pair of flags during a thunderstorm, trying to blow her Rider away from her as he reached for the rope. He ended up diving for it when she stopped to breathe.

"I'm so sorry, love," Bartholomew sobbed. "There's nothing else to be done!"

The wind dragon threw her head back, bellowing as loud as she could in the vain hope that her problematic student would hear her and somehow be able to flee. Of course, her desperate last effort came to naught.

The stalls were locked, and the stables were bolted. The dragons who knew what was going to happen slashed at the metal doors with insufficient claws. The fire dragons breathed fires that wouldn't catch. The water dragons made floods that ultimately washed down the draining systems. The wind dragons whipped up hurricanes of hay and sawdust. The earth dragons made cracks appear in the ground, but were unable to do enough to get them out in time.

Ozpin wept as he walked away from the sound of Ragnar savagely beating the door with his tail. He envied his dragon's pure-heartedness, the way he could so easily throw aside everything to do what he knew was right. Ozpin knew things weren't so simple, that he had to play the game and remain in his position, so that he could be there to save other dragons that would otherwise be in danger.

Still, part of him wished that he could just rip his human skin away, toss aside every Council member before him, and fly off into the distance with the poor dragonet in his arms.

Sky remained in Tornado's stall, hugging his dragon tightly, biting back tears. They were coming with the injection, and he would not let Tornado spend his last waking moments watching his Rider cry. Instead, he stroked his beautiful, vicious, uncontrollable, loyal dragon's neck. He told Tornado what a good dragon he was, what a badass fighter he was. He talked about how they'd easily pull ahead of Nimbus in flight class, how he promised to play with him outside even more once spring came around. He fed Tornado apples and raw meat out of his hand, not flinching when the dragon's sharp fangs scraped his skin.

Tornado had never been happier! His Sky was with him so much now. They hadn't even needed to go to those boring classes today! "Good Sky," he purred. "Food Sky." He ate another apple, belching loudly, creating a ripple in the air.

Sky choked back a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a sob. _Of course, you'd get your powers now,_ he thought. _And of course, they would show themselves in a freaking belch!_

The Councilman came with the injection. Sky knew it would do no good to beg for more time. He curled up between his dragon's front paws, listening to that mighty heartbeat, whispering nonsense at this point. Tornado nuzzled his back, rumbling happily, nipping at his arm, leaving little red dots. Then, the heartbeat slowed. A large, green head slumped down to the ground. Tornado let out a snore, his paws twitching.

The Council lashed ropes to the sleeping dragon and dragged him outside, toward the open field.

It was Specter who saw what was happening. Specter, the only dragon who still kept his shutters open in this freezing weather, saw Tornado being dragged away, and knew what was happening immediately. Ao Guang had talked about the ugly "culling," and about the threat to Tornado, though he hadn't been worried at the time. He had been convinced that nothing so horrible could happen.

Specter threw his head back and let out a piercing whistle. "They're taking Tornado! They're going to kill him!" All enmity with the CRDL dragons was forgotten as Specter breathed ice at the door, hoping to freeze and break it.

Pit sprang into action immediately. _Sorry, Nautilus,_ he thought as he narrowed his eyes and focused on his stall's lock.

Ozpin was standing in the field, watching with trembling hands as the green form of Tornado was dragged across the dirt like a giant bag of refuse. The indignity of it all made bile rise in his throat. He watched Sky, ready to offer what shallow comfort he could, and was heartbroken but understanding when his student shot him a spiteful glare before turning resolutely away.

 _You have every right to hate me,_ he thought miserably. _I failed both of you._

Pit could barely hear the sound of Tornado being dragged away over the anguished, desperate cries of Mudslide, Barracuda, and Tank. He knew he wouldn't have time to free anyone else. He had to stop this on his own!

Sky knelt next to his dragon, noticing how peaceful Tornado's thin face looked, how relaxed his head fins were. He allowed the tears to fall as he glared at the approaching executioner, daring him to laugh or make a comment.

The man held a special gun, one that fired not a bullet, but a metal spike, similar to what some farmers used to quickly kill farm animals. He loaded the spike, and knelt in front of Tornado, his expression unreadable.

Click. The lock was open.

Pit burst from his stall, running faster than he ever had before. In his desperation, he opened his wings, pumping them against the air, trying to gain some momentum. For a moment, he was lifted fully off the ground.

In that moment, he heard a hiss of air, then a loud thunk.

He stumbled to the ground and skidded to a halt yards away from Tornado's body. He saw the blood trickling down the wind dragon's head. _Too late!_ His paws shook. His legs trembled. Throwing his head back, he howled.

In the freshman stalls, the other dragons took up the cry. Mudslide was louder than anyone, her deep, booming bellow ringing off every building like the echo of a funeral bell.

Pit was so deep in grief, he didn't notice the humans rushing him until they were almost upon him. He jumped back with a yelp of surprise, feeling immense relief when Ozpin ran over and stood in front of the bad men.

"Hold it! Don't make him more agitated!"

"Why's that dragon out of its stall, Ozpin?" one of the soldiers growled.

"I don't know. It looks like the door wasn't closed correctly. Please stand down." Ozpin turned to Pit. "Hush, now. Go back to your stall. There's nothing else you can do. Please trust me."

Pit blinked wearily at Ozpin, suddenly feeling very tired. He did trust Ozpin. Ozpin was Ragnar's Rider, after all. Later, he would start to question why he was so ready to trust someone who had stood by while Tornado died. Just then, however, he obeyed and walked back to his stall, staring at the ground as Ozpin locked the door behind him.

"I assure you, his Rider will be disciplined," Ozpin said. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to contact the rest of Sky's team, so their dragons can say goodbye."

"We need to dispose of the body," the lead Councilman said.

Ozpin's eyes flashed. "You came to my dragonry and killed one of my dragons. You may have had the legal right to do so, but don't think I'm going to show you any courtesy if you won't show any to the dragon, his Rider, or his team. They will be allowed to say goodbye. That's final."

In the end, the men stepped off, grumbling to each other as they set about preparing the transport that would take Tornado's body to be disposed of.

Sky was curled up in the curve of Tornado's forelegs, clinging to the rapidly-fading warmth in those green scales. He sobbed his heart out, nuzzling a head frill that now felt like a dead flower petal.

Russel and Dove came immediately. They released their dragons, along with Mudslide. They knew Cardin wouldn't be coming down, after all.

The three dragons ran to their brother's side, letting out small sounds of distress and anger. Tank stopped a few feet away, staring blankly with dull amber eyes. He sat down, his face a mask of numb horror. His wings trembled as he bowed his head and sniffed.

Barracuda barreled toward her brother, bashing her head against his side, causing Sky to be dislodged. "Come on, idiot!" she barked. "Wake up!" When Tornado didn't move, she roared, her voice ringing with unshed tears. "Don't play games with me, you crazy moron! Wake up!" She moved to his front, smacking his face with a forepaw. "Come on!"

Mudslide shoved Barracuda away before she could strike the corpse again. "Stop it!" she growled. "He's dead, okay? He's not waking up!" She stared down at her brother, at his motionless limbs and dead face with a hole in the brow. He didn't even look like Tornado anymore. This was just a dead thing that was shaped like him.

She gently nudged her brother's head, then collapsed to the ground. "Why?" she breathed. "We were the strongest team. Why did this happen?" She turned to Sky, who was watching her with watery eyes, and opened a wing for him to crawl under.

When Sky moved close to her and sobbed against her side, she felt a surge of protectiveness for him, and a new purpose. She thought of what Tornado had always said when holding his Rider: "Protect Sky." _I'll look after him for you, Tornado._ she thought. _I promise._

But where was Cardin? Why hadn't he come with the others? He was back now, so he had to know. Why…? Why? Just why?

Shaking her head, Mudslide chose to focus on her brother, on the pain she could understand. Lifting her head, she let out a long, ringing keen that pierced the chilly winter air and the hearts of anyone who could hear it.

Tank lifted his head, his tremulous voice joining with Mudslide's. He stared at his brother, the brother who had always fought him, the brother who had always been so confused and addled and disturbed, and started to hiccup uncontrollably.

Barracuda's shoulders shook. Only Russel's hand on her leg kept her from going into a frenzy and ripping up everything in sight. Tornado had been like her. He had been a fighter. What would she do without him? How could she beat Tank into shape without Tornado's help? What if Tank was killed next? Or Mudslide?

Impulsively, the water dragon moved away from her Rider and draped a large wing over her last remaining brother. Tank stiffened, staring at her in surprise, before huddling close, heating up his scales to warm her.

Russel and Dove looked at their dragons, then at Mudslide and Sky, then at Tornado's body. They wouldn't tell Sky about how Cardin was already wondering when Ozpin would give the team a new wind egg. They wouldn't scoff later on when Teams RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN sat with them at dinner. No, they were just going to wait for now and hope that their team, and its members, weren't about to fall apart at the seams.

Later on, after Tornado was taken away, the stalls and stables were unlocked. Riders rushed to their dragons to comfort them.

Pit wrapped his wings around Blake, letting out short, distressed barks, hating himself for not getting to Tornado sooner.

Meanwhile, Blake clung to Pit with everything she had, still shaking with the burden of what Ozpin had just told her, what Pit had managed to do. She thanked whatever gods had kept him from being killed along with Tornado.

Ozpin walked alone to the now unlocked earth stable, and to the barn that held Ragnar. His dragon sat by the entrance, head bowed, wings hanging limply at his sides. Shame filled Ozpin, and he was barely able to meet Ragnar's gray gaze.

"I'm so sorry," he choked.

Ragnar clenched his fangs as tears rolled down his snout. In that moment, he wished more than anything that there had been a way for him to give his long, spent life in exchange for that one impulsive, damaged, angry dragonet.

He looked at his Rider. He didn't need to be able to speak human words to convey what he was thinking. _I don't know how much longer I can do this._

Ozpin placed a hand on Ragnar's snout, finally allowing himself to start weeping. "I know, my friend. I know."

 **Can I come out? No one's pointing weapons at me? Okay, good.**

 **There are few things in the realm of fantasy sadder than the death of a dragon. It's one of those things that never fails to get me, especially in dragon rider stories. In Tornado's case, he was doomed from the start due to his violent nature, which was nurtured early on by Team CRDL's bullying of other teams. He learned to attack humans but didn't have the ability to separate scenarios and specific people in his mind. So, a small, defenseless human like Jenny appeared to him as fair game.**

 **I'll see you guys next week with more of the aftermath. Then, we'll get to the Dragon Festival.**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	62. Harbinger

**Rawr, everybody! First of all, I'd like to thank you all for not teleporting through my computer screen to murder me last week. This next chapter will have some of the aftermath of Tornado's death, plus another look at our favorite villainess.**

 **Enjoy!**

A shadow descended over Beacon Dragonry, one that was felt throughout the weeks leading to the Dragon Festival. Tornado's death had changed everything. Dragons were clinging to their siblings and friends at the end of the day, wondering if they would suddenly lose someone close to them. The older students spent more time with their dragons, who mourned the loss of a young dragonet. There was a rift between the professors and their dragons, one that showed in every interaction.

Worst of all were the freshmen. A sense of panic had fallen over any Rider whose dragon was even slightly deformed, or who showed even the merest sign of abnormal behavior.

"Rain's tail twitches when she gets excited. That won't attract the Council's attention, will it?"

"Lava's always chasing birds. That's not a sign of too much aggression, right?"

"Hurricane's left fin is slightly bigger than his right fin. I hope that's normal…"

The dragons of that year, those who were Tornado's age, were shaken to the core. They had been born at the Dragonry, and had been taught over the course of their short lives to trust their Riders and the professors, and yet one of their own was dead. One of their own was dead, and it had apparently been allowed by those in charge!

They were so confused and numb, most of them barely reacted when they were moved to their new, permanent homes in the elemental stables.

Ruby was stroking Storm's neck as she glanced at the new bedding and filled food and water dishes. "This is nice, huh girl?" she asked, trying to force some cheerfulness into her voice, but failing miserably.

Storm flicked a fin weakly, pressing her head against Ruby's side. She couldn't stop thinking about Tornado. That day kept playing over and over again in her mind: Specter's distressed whistle, the sound of a dragging body, Pit's stall swinging open, the sound of a spike being driven through a dragon's skull, Barracuda's anger, Mudslide's mournful keen, which had turned into an echoing cry that still rang in every dragon's head days later.

She had heard about cullings, and knew that the Riders were afraid of them, but had never thought that they'd actually face something so awful. They were only dragonets! No one would hurt a dragonet.

And yet, those humans had. They had looked right at Tornado and killed him without hesitation.

Ruby looked at her dragon's distant eyes, and couldn't do anything but hug her. She had cried for hours when Ozpin gave the announcement to lock up the dragons, huddled in Yang's arms as she imagined poor Tornado's last moments.

In the aftermath, the team learned of what Pit had done, and Blake had become more terrified than ever.

"What if they figure out what he can do?!" Blake had asked. "What if they realize what he is?"

"Don't worry," Weiss said. "Ozpin will…" She trailed off, realizing that none of them had much faith in Ozpin just then. "We'll figure something out," she finished lamely.

Ruby held Storm tightly, trying to push away the terror that coated everything and everyone around her. "I'll keep you safe, Storm. I promise. Anyone who wants to kill you will have to kill me too."

Storm whimpered, wrapping a long foreleg around Ruby. She didn't want Ruby to die to save her! Why did the world have to be so full of death?

Ruby stayed for a while, but Storm was tired and showed no interest in playing or exercising the new freedom that came with an open-air stable. So, giving her dragon a kiss on the snout, Ruby left. On her way out, she saw a stall right by the door, a stall whose nameplate had recently been taken down. Her throat tightened and she hurried away.

Storm stared at the wall. She knew that there were other wind first years in this barn, but didn't bother seeking them out. Judging by the lack of movement, the others were feeling the same way she was.

Minutes later, however, she saw someone new enter the barn. It was Sky.

The Rider walked like he was asleep, head moving woozily this way and that. He stumbled into the empty stall near the entrance, staring at the ground as if it held the deepest secrets of the universe, then sat down in the bedding.

Storm was just thinking about walking over when another, taller figure entered the barn. It was Gust's Rider, Doctor Oobleck.

The professor found Sky immediately and sat down next to him. "You're drunk," he noted.

"What's it to you?" Sky mumbled. "It's not like I'm your student anymore."

"No, but Ozpin has offered you employment and housing. Since you're here, I'm guessing that you accepted."

"Are you gonna tell me how grateful I should be?" Sky growled. "Because, if you are…"

"No," Doctor Oobleck assured him. "Nothing of the sort."

"I can't go home," Sky continued, slumping against the side of the stall. "Can't. Parents'll just say it was for the best. 'Just get a new dragon, Sky.' Yeah, get a new dragon and watch that one die too!" He slammed his fist suddenly against the ground, causing a nearby dragon to jump.

"Mister Lark." Doctor Oobleck gently took Sky's wrist, examined his knuckles for bruises, then let go. "That wouldn't happen. We'd make sure-"

"Don't make promises you won't keep!" Sky snapped, suddenly turning his anger on the professor. "Ozpin promised me he'd do everything in his power to save Tornado! Everything!"

"Releasing him wasn't within his power, you know," Doctor Oobleck pointed out, even as memories of Gust flinging herself against the door of the stable made him wince.

"Because bowing to the Council is more important, right? Because he needs to stick around to protect other dragons that aren't Tornado, right?" Sky snorted. "How well is he gonna protect Barracuda, huh? Or that runt Jaune Arc was stuck with? Or is the Council already coming for them too? Will Ozpin be sucking the guy's cock while he shoots the spike gun next time."

"Now, hold on!" Doctor Oobleck said, his eyes flashing. "You have no idea what Dragonmaster Ozpin goes through to keep this place safe. He isn't perfect, but he's saved more dragons from the Council than any dragonmaster who has ever lived! He has sacrificed everything to make Beacon what it is."

Sky listened, then shrugged a shoulder. "I don't care. I already said I'd take the job. Just don't talk to me. I don't want any of you coming near me. If I need help with anything, I'll go ask Blake's dragon! At least he's reliable. He showed more guts than any professor, parent, or cop I've ever met. A fucking baby dragon has more of a spine than any of you!"

He stood abruptly, sneering down at his former teacher. "How does that feel, _Doctor?_ " He stomped off, his gait still unsteady.

Doctor Oobleck watched Sky leave, listening for the sound of any other students approaching. When he heard nothing, he put his face in his hands and wept.

Storm did stand up then, along with several other wind dragons. A cream-colored one was closest to the door. "I'll find Gust," she said shortly before running outside.

The other dragons shifted, unsure of what to do until Gust arrived. It was Storm who left her stall and trotted over to Doctor Oobleck. She lowered her head and nudged his arm, warbling softly.

When he looked up and saw the silver and white wind dragon gazing at him with such concern, he sobbed even harder. "I'm sorry," he gasped, placing a shaking hand on Storm's brow. "I failed you. We all failed you."

Storm stared hard at the professor, feeling an unclenching in her chest. She remembered how Ragnar had spoken of the Council, of how they were higher than even the dragonry professors. They had more control, more power than even Ozpin himself.

It was then that she realized it wasn't a matter of trust between the students and professors. It was just an example of cruel reality. And the reality was that the professors were broken inside because of this. They had done everything they could to prevent this, and had still failed, and that knowledge was killing them. They hated what had happened, and blamed themselves even though there was nothing else they could have done without making things worse.

These ideas were complex, and Storm couldn't put words to most of them. The main thing she understood, however, was that she pitied them.

She didn't forgive them, because it wasn't her place to do so. That was up to Sky, Mudslide, Barracuda, and Tank. Perhaps they would forgive, though it was likely some of them never would.

Still, she pitied the powerful, but not powerful enough professors. _How many times have you failed?_ she wondered.

She was still confused, she was still shaken, and she was still afraid. But, she pushed that aside as she licked at Doctor Oobleck's wet cheeks, comforting him, letting him take whatever meaning he wanted from it. If he thought she was forgiving him, that was fine.

Doctor Oobleck made a strangled noise in his throat, clenching his eyes shut as even more self-loathing crashed down on him. _Even now, they care. We do not deserve dragons. We never did._

It was then that the cream dragon returned with Gust, who took a step toward her weeping Rider.

Storm looked up at her at the same time the professor did. "He needs you," she said simply.

Gust stared down at her Rider. Memories of being pushed into the stable were still at the front of her mind, as were red-hot, angry thoughts of Tornado and the Council. But, as she looked at her partner, she finally was able to move past it. This had happened before. It would happen again. Even if part of her hated him and the other professors for it, her love for her Rider would always outweigh any feelings of anger, betrayal, or grief.

She nudged him gently with her nose and beckoned toward the door. "Bart," she growled. "Com."

Doctor Oobleck stood up and followed her out, keeping one hand on her leg. "I'm sorry," he kept whispering as his dragon led him away. "I'm so sorry."

….

Cinder read the latest news report from Vale with a slight frown. "The first culling of the year," she murmured. "Such a tragedy. Such a preventable tragedy." She noted the name of the human Rider, who was apparently now working as a stable hand at the dragonry. _Because he has nowhere to go, I'm sure. He won't have any love for Beacon or Ozpin after this. That will surely be useful in the near future._

She and Strike were waiting on the outskirts of the White Fang's latest research lab. Even though she was funding it, she wasn't allowed on the property without an escort. _As if I could be kept away,_ she thought with a smirk. _But, I suppose I can let the animals have their delusions of control._

Strike was pacing back and forth, rumbling softly. She didn't like these White Fang creatures. They were cruel and smelled of rotten dragon eggs. She preferred the bandits. At least when the bandits visited, she could see Phoenix.

Cinder turned just as a cloaked Faunus with large fox ears appeared on the path. "Greetings, Lady Cinder," he said, bowing his head respectfully. "I'm glad you came so quickly."

"You said you have something to show me?" Cinder asked, cutting straight to the point as Strike fell into step behind her.

"Indeed. Do follow me." The Faunus beckoned her down the path, which wound this way and that, like a deer path would, before ending at a half-underground bunker. Instead of entering the bunker, however, the Faunus led Cinder around the back, to a fenced-in area of forest. "Brother! Come out, and bring our little prize."

A second Faunus, who had a large, bushy tail, emerged from behind a tree, where a large pond had been built. He looked toward the pond and clicked his tongue. "Forward, Harbinger. Forward."

There was a splash as a dragon hatchling poked its head out of the water. It was tiny. It couldn't have hatched more than a day ago, and yet it was swimming!

As the dragon wobbled closer, trying to keep up with the bush-tailed Faunus, Cinder felt a thrill unlike anything she had felt in a long time: This dragon was a hybrid. A living, breathing, successful hybrid.

It was a deep, bluish-green color with patches of brown dotting it, making it look like a map of a strange set of continents. Its eyes were a soft gray color, with a ring of teal just around the pupils. It had a stocky build, large feet, and a tail as thick as a tree trunk. It also bore head fins, gills, and the beginnings of fins going down its back.

The tailed Faunus picked up the dragon, stroking its map-like scales. "An earth/water hybrid, the first to pass Leader Adam's inspections. Made possible with your generous donations, of course."

The Faunus with the fox ears gestured grandly. "Lady Cinder, meet Harbinger: the first of many hybrid dragons who will fight for your cause and ours."

Cinder held out a hand for the blunt-nosed dragon to sniff. When it moved closer, she examined its eyes. Already, she could see a deep potential for intelligence, one that was far greater than any other elemental she knew. "Perfect," she murmured. "And who is its Rider?"

"I am," the tailed Faunus said. "Though he did bond to both of us, my brother is more of the nurturing type. He cares for and feeds Harbinger, while I see to the training aspect."

The other Faunus's ears flattened a little. "Leader Adam has higher officers who will require hybrids, and we know your subordinates take equal priority. We were lucky to be allowed even one."

Cinder silently noted the edge of jealousy in the Faunus's voice. "And what are your names?" The eared one introduced himself as Fennec Albain, while the other was Corsac Albain. "You are to be congratulated, Albain brothers. This is a feat that hasn't been achieved in years. You named this dragon well, for he will be the harbinger of a new age for all of us."

Corsac grinned. "I quite agree."

Cinder reluctantly bade Harbinger farewell, promised the Albains that they would be remembered for their creation, and got on Strike's back. She would be leading a raid on the border of Mistral, and it would be rather rude to be late.

As she flew, Cinder mentally created a list of what needed to be done next. _Raid the broodery. Have a discussion with Adam concerning giving my subordinates first crack at the next hybrid. And…_

She thought of that poor, dragonless boy at Beacon. _And tell Raven that she has a new recruit waiting for her in Vale._

 **ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL!**

 **There's your Mass Effect reference of the day. Anyhoo, the stakes are rising, folks! Pit is no longer the only hybrid on Remnant, and Sky is already in a downward spiral. What else can possibly happen between now and the Festival? What will happen during the Festival? Stay tuned!**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	63. Team RWBY's Departure

**Rawr, everyone! I am so sorry about the late post. Last night kinda sucked, and I ended up conking out early and forgetting to post. Hopefully, the progression of the plot in this chapter makes up for my slip of mind.**

 **Enjoy!**

Ruby and Ozpin had one last practice session with Penny the night before their departure for Mistral. Team RWBY, along with the other teams attending the festival, had been excused from classes so they could pack and prepare their dragons. Ruby wanted to be excited, but the memory of Tornado's death was still raw.

Ozpin noticed immediately when Ruby and Storm approached. "I have seen several cullings over the years," he murmured. "It never gets easier."

"I heard the dragons crying afterward," Ruby sniffled. "I've never heard such a terrible sound."

Storm, meanwhile, looked up at Ragnar. "Why didn't you stop them?" she asked, voicing the question that had been in her mind ever since that day.

Ragnar rumbled gently as he touched his nose to hers. "I couldn't. Dragon cullings are done because humans and Faunus control the rules, control who is allowed to live or die. If I had intervened, I would have been killed." He shook his head. "I would have done so regardless, but I was locked away with every other dragon."

"Why did Ozpin let it happen?"

"If he had refused, they would have replaced him with someone else, someone who wouldn't try hiding the disabilities of the dragons, someone who would allow a mass culling of any dragon with the slightest imperfection." Ragnar tossed his head. "Tornado may be dead, but many more would be without Ozpin. Twiggy wouldn't have been allowed to live past her hatching under someone else, and there are others would have been killed within the first semester. Ao Guang, for example."

Storm felt a sensation similar to frozen claws jabbing her chest as she thought of losing Ao Guang. She looked at Ozpin, then sighed. "It's not fair."

"No, it isn't," Ragnar murmured. "But that's how it is."

When Penny was activated, she immediately sensed something wrong with Storm. The dragon let her read her memories, and the light flickered yellow several times. _That's awful._ Something was going through Penny, a new kind of energy. What was it?

 _It is,_ Storm agreed.

Ozpin frowned when he saw the flickering. "I hope she's not malfunctioning."

Thankfully, all the drills went flawlessly. However, Penny hesitated when Ruby asked her to detach.

"Ruby, may I…stay here longer?" Penny asked, her voice going up an octave.

"Sorry, Penny," Ruby said. "You'd run out of energy."

"May I stay at half power?" she asked. "I will not interfere with anything."

"No," Ozpin cut in. "You were ordered to detach. Please do so."

"Command acknowledged," Penny replied, though her voice sounded more sullen than usual. The light went out, the armor retracted, and the plate fell into Ozpin's hand.

"This is…concerning," Ozpin murmured. "We'll need to test it one more time before the unveiling, just to make sure nothing like this happens."

Ruby was looking at it with a frown. "Maybe she's starting to think and feel things. That's what always happens in the books I've read."

Storm knew that Penny thought and felt things. She could tell whenever she had the plate on. She had felt the machine's wish as clearly as she felt her own thoughts. _She wants to see the world through me,_ she thought. _Can she not see or feel when she's off me? That must be terrible…_ She wished Ozpin hadn't taken Penny off. She would have gladly shared headspace with the kind voice if it meant letting her experience life.

"Let's hope you're wrong," Ozpin sighed. "We need this machine to work as intended. The last thing we want is for it to gain sentience." He'd see what Ironwood thought about it once they could speak in person.

"That will be all, Miss Rose. Storm," he said, nodding to both of them. "Go and get some sleep. We need to wake up early tomorrow."

"Yes, sir!" Ruby led Storm back to the wind stable. "We're going to Mistral tomorrow, girl. We'll get to meet so many new dragons." Despite everything, thinking of that was enough to make Ruby feel some excitement. "Sleep well!"

Storm watched her Rider go, her tail lashing nervously. She wasn't sure how she felt about leaving Beacon. What if something happened while she was gone?

A gentle warble from near the door caught her attention, and she looked over at the cream-colored dragon, whose name was Meringue. "Don't worry," the older dragon said in a voice that was sweet and smooth, like an autumn breeze. "It's my first Festival too. Just stick with me if you get nervous, okay?"

Storm nodded. "Okay. Thanks." She let out a yawn and put her head on her paws, trying to get some sleep.

….

The following morning, Team RWBY quickly left their luggage by the airships and rushed to get their dragons to the transports. Teams JNPR and SSSN had also woken up early, and had brought their dragons out to say goodbye.

"It'll only be a week," Storm told Ao Guang. "That's what Ruby said." Her tail lashed back and forth nervously. "I'll really miss you, though."

"Me too!" Ao Guang said, groaning loudly. "Things'll be boring without you!" He touched his nose to hers, then quickly jumped back, feeling his scales warming up. "Um, see you later."

"Y-Yeah. Bye," Storm replied, her heart fluttering more than her twitching fins.

"Don't get too high and mighty while at this thing," Huo grumbled to Fang. "Or I'll slash your face when you get back."

Fang snorted. "Don't get soft while I'm gone."

The two growled deeply at each other before abruptly turning away.

Zircon shifted nervously from one paw to the other. "Be careful! It might be dangerous way over there!"

"I will," Pit promised. He glanced at Twiggy. "Look after him for me, will you?"

Twiggy nodded twining her tail with Zircon's. "I will."

Zircon's ears flicked and he looked quickly at the ground.

Pit noticed a dark brown form padding through the grass. It was Mudslide. Ever since the move to the stables, she had taken to wandering by herself for long periods of time, since Cardin never visited her outside of class. Her stall was close to Pit's, and he frequently heard her crying into her bedding. He padded over.

"How are you?" he asked.

Mudslide growled sullenly. "I'm alive."

Pit's wings drooped. "I'm sorry."

"Not your fault. Too bad you didn't have more time, though. If you'd gotten me out, I'd have been able to kill those humans easily."

"Then, you'd be dead along with Tornado," Pit pointed out.

"Maybe that would be better," Mudslide muttered, turning and walking away without another word, her large tail dragging through the dew-coated grass.

Pit watched her go, unsure of what else he could say, so he went back to Blake, who patted his nose gently.

"I saw Sky taking care of her," Blake told Pit quietly, feeling a soft glow of pride at her dragon's kindness. "She won't be alone."

Specter happily pranced around, saying his farewells to everyone. "I'll be the first ice dragon to participate in such an event. It'll be glorious!"

"Or, you could get your tongue stuck to a pole in front of everyone," Fang muttered.

"Oh, shut up!"

Hugs were exchanged. Jaune easily lifted Ruby up and ruffled her hair as he put her down. "Bring back souvenirs, okay?"

"Of course, I will!" Ruby said. "I'll text you all once I see the shops, and you can tell me what you want."

"Oh, I actually have a list of things to look for!" Scarlet handed Ruby a piece of paper. "On the other side are some food recommendations. There's this place that sells takoyaki that's simply divine!"

Sage smiled fondly at his boyfriend. "You know you can text her, right?"

"Well, yes. I just wanted to make sure she had it on paper in case she left her Scroll somewhere!"

Ruby giggled. "Thanks, Scarlet."

"Ugh, I'm sooooo jealous," Nora groaned. "Guys, we gotta go next year. We just gotta."

Pyrrha chuckled. "We'll make it our goal. It's in Vacuo next year, right?"

"I think so…"

Sun hugged Weiss goodbye, wrapping his tail loosely around her waist. He had found that, while she liked to huff and grumble, Weiss actually enjoyed being hugged. "Watch yourself, Ice Queen," he said, messing up her hair a bit.

Weiss rolled her eyes as she hugged back. "I'm perfectly capable of handling myself." She lightly swatted Sun's shoulder when he messed with her hair, then accepted a hug from Neptune and Ren.

Meanwhile, Sun gave Blake a hug goodbye. He noted two things in that moment: One was that the hug felt totally platonic, with no lingering touches. The second was that he was totally okay with that. He thought about what Sage had told him back in the first semester about waiting for his feelings to settle before deciding what move to make.

 _Good thing I listened,_ he thought. "Have a good time," he said as he drew back. "Yang, make sure this girl gets to party a bit between contests!"

Yang grinned. "Will do!" She turned to Pyrrha. "Keep everyone in line while I'm gone. Especially Jaune," she added with a wink.

Pyrrha blushed, her smile widening. "He doesn't need to be kept in line," she said, giving her teammate a fond look. They had taken to casual exchanges of affection since that first kiss in the field, though they had yet to talk about an official relationship or go on any dates. In the face of Tornado's death, it hadn't seemed appropriate. _Maybe over the next week,_ she thought. _We should talk about it at some point._

At that moment, a loud, bugling cry echoed from the direction of the dragon transports.

"That's Ragnar," Ruby said. "Time to go!" She grabbed Storm's lead rope. "Come on, girl!"

Team RWBY waved over their shoulders at their friends as they rushed their dragons to the transports. Everyone but Weiss gasped when they saw just how immense the ships were.

"I've never seen something this big," Ruby muttered. "Can these even get off the ground?"

"Well, of course they can, you dunce." Weiss rolled her eyes, at the same time feeling a certain sense of pride for her home country, which had developed the transport, along with many other vehicles. She led Specter to where the water dragons were being loaded. "Now, be good," she instructed. "And don't worry. We'll be stopping to take breaks on the way there."

Specter whistled, nuzzling Weiss's cheek before stepping onto the transport, head held high. He balked a little when he realized that the other stalls were all filled with older water dragons. He had gotten used to his special stall in the water stable, which was kept separate from the other stalls by two empty stalls, and was coated with frost.

One of the water dragons glanced at him with mild interest and pointed to an empty stall with a webbed paw. Specter relaxed a little and was able to settle in.

Storm, meanwhile, was pacing back and forth once Ruby left. A warble from nearby caused her to look up. Meringue was peering over the wall between their stalls. "Hi," she said.

"Hello," Meringue replied, green eyes glimmering in a friendly way. "I've heard that the freshman dragons are all learning to fly now. Is that true?"

Storm immediately started talking about her latest lessons and how far she and Nimbus had flown recently, her nervousness momentarily forgotten.

Pit was in a transport with Ragnar, and several other earth dragons. He jumped a little when Ragnar looked at him.

"Keep your head down, young one," he grumbled.

Pit nodded. He knew what Ragnar meant, of course. _I put myself in danger when I unlocked my stall that time,_ he thought. _I can't afford to do anything like that in Mistral._ Of course, he knew that, if given the same choice again and again, he would have tried to save Tornado every time. There was nothing else he could have done.

Fang quickly made himself at home among the other fire dragons, snarling and bickering and bragging about how sharp his claws were, how hot his fire was, and how keen his fangs were. Already, he knew that this was going to be a fun trip. This was further proven when a nearby yearling reached over with his tail to smack a two-year-old dragon in the head, prompting a loud roar.

Team RWBY got on the ship, where they quickly found Team CFVY and sat down with them.

"This is so exciting!" Velvet said, her eyes shining and her ears twitching. "I wasn't sure if we'd be accepted for this year's Festival."

"What events will you be entering?" Weiss asked.

"Well, Meringue and I will be in the second-year flight race," Velvet said proudly. "We've gotten really good this past semester. She's a master at quick turns."

"Java's gonna be in a fire target practice contest," Coco said. "His breaths are still kinda wide, but hopefully we can get some practice in and narrow the streams down a bit."

"Will you be in any of the first-year contests?" Yatsuhashi asked. "I know there aren't many."

"I'll definitely enter Specter in one of the beauty shows," Weiss said proudly. "And whatever else I can find. He deserves a proper debut, after all."

"I don't know if I'll enter any contests," Yang admitted. "But I know there are a few controlled sparring circles. Fang'll like those, for sure!"

As the teams talked about the Festival, their dragons, and the attractions they'd try to enjoy, they were finally able to shake off the cobwebs of grief that had been clinging to them. For now, it was okay to be happy and look forward to something worthwhile.

….

The ships were arriving in Mistral. Several eyes watched with varying amounts of interest. The keenest of these eyes belonged to four young Riders, who looked and acted like ordinary freshmen. If one looked closely at them, however, they'd notice a certain degree of tension in the kids, as if observing the incoming Riders and dragons was less a matter of curiosity, and more a matter of grave necessity.

"Here come the ships from Beacon," the only male member of the group noted. "Think that ice dragon will be there?"

"Cinder said it would," the green-haired girl said impatiently. "It'll probably be with the water dragons."

Neo was ever silent, keeping her distance from her teammates, who she still didn't fully trust. She watched the transports dutifully, knowing that Roman would want to know if there was anything that could be stolen. Not that she could contact him openly, of course.

She glanced at her teammates. Emerald looked to be at least a little excited about seeing the dragons. Mercury had his arms folded and wore an obvious sneer, as if he was measuring up the incoming dragons for a future fight. The only one who was impossible to read was Ilia.

The chameleon Faunus watched the unloading with keen eyes, shifting a bit when she saw the ice dragon being led off the ship. _So, that's the Schnee family's designer dragon,_ she thought, her lip curling. Then, she saw something that made her take a step back in shock.

Emerald looked at her leader, and let out an audible gasp. Ilia's skin had turned bright red, and her freckles were yellow. "Ilia!" she hissed.

Immediately, Ilia reined in her colors, taking a deep breath, cursing herself for her stupidity. She needed to blend in! Thankfully, this wasn't Atlas. Faking being human was simply an extra level of security. If anyone had seen her change just then, it wouldn't be disastrous.

What was disastrous was who she saw. It was someone she had never expected to see again, someone who she both loved and hated more than anyone else.

Her eyes didn't leave Blake Belladonna for one moment, though they narrowed when they caught sight of the large earth dragon, an earth dragon whose color perfectly matched the hybrid egg that had been stolen.

She needed to contact Adam as soon as possible!

 **Team IMEN assembles! And the Festival finally begins! Dun dun DUN! What could possibly happen next for our heroes? Stay tuned to find out.**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	64. Welcome to Mistral

**RAWR, everybody! This week, we're giving our villains some love and backstory, and are starting the fun times in Mistral. Enjoy!**

 _Haven Dragonry: Just before first semester_

Everything was going according to plan. The four chosen spies passed the combat test with flying colors, and were even more welcome when Dragonmaster Lionheart found that they had their own eggs. Of course, their backstories placed them all over Remnant, so they had to make their simultaneous arrival convincing.

Ilia was a native to the coasts of Mistral. Her family had sent her to a prestigious primary school in Atlas, which funded her transfer to Haven and provided her with an egg after she demonstrated incredible skill with the school's dragons. There was nothing like planting a seed of truth in a good lie to make it that much stronger.

Neo was a mute orphan from Vale. Her parents died while she was very young, and she was fostered by a broodmaster, who gave her the egg she had brought to Haven. It had certainly been easier than saying she was fostered by one of Remnant's most notorious thugs.

Mercury and Emerald had been living on the streets in Vacuo when a nearby broodery was attacked by the mysterious woman on the golden dragon. They risked their lives to help save the eggs and dragons, which earned them eggs of their own. Cinder liked that she was involved in this story and knew that their former "actions" would lower any suspicions people might have of them.

All of the paperwork had been forged months in advance from the breeding records, to tampered news stories of an early attack that most of Remnant didn't have any information on, to fake files. And, after many bribes and threats, there was a high-ranking staff member at the Atlas Primary Academy, as well as the entire staff of two different brooderies, who were willing to swear that the stories were true. Everything was set.

Cinder made sure that the dragons would be siblings. While she trusted Mercury and Emerald completely, she knew that she needed a bit of extra security for the other two. She had scouted out a broodery that had four sibling eggs, so that the dragons would be loyal to each other, even if any of the Riders tried a double-cross. She also arranged things so that her plant in the Schnee Dust Company tended to the Dust that would go into these four eggs. These dragons would be part of the greater fight, after all. They needed to be perfect.

And perfect, they were.

On the day of the hatching, the four were put into separate rooms in Haven's brood building. Ilia knelt before her egg. She had chosen a fire dragon, a dragon to match the burning rage that filled her whenever she looked at her smug human teammates, whenever she thought about how Adam had been forced to lower himself before someone like Cinder.

 _This is for the Faunus,_ she reminded herself. _We need the humans now, but they will be disposable once we have what we need._

The egg was a deep, smoky gray color and was flecked with brassy dots that mirrored Ilia's own freckles. When the shell cracked, it was hard to tell whether it or her heart made a louder noise.

There was a growl from within, and the dragonet swung its head, smashing the egg tooth against the shell, determined to get out. Little claws scratched at the smooth interior, and a curled tail longed to stretch out fully. Shaking its head from side to side, the tiny creature beat its prison away and let out a victorious hiss.

For a moment, all anger and all thought left Ilia. All that existed was the little dragon. _Her_ dragon.

She extended a hand, and the dragonet immediately bit down. Ilia barely flinched. A smile spread across her face. "You really are fierce," she cooed. "You'll be so strong." She grabbed an apple slice with her free hand and held it out, enticing the dragonet's teeth away from her.

The gray, freckled dragon considered its options for a moment, then snapped up the apple, making little hungry noises in its throat as it scarfed its meal down. It blinked its tiny eyes, which were the red-orange color of a forest fire.

A wave of protectiveness swept over Ilia as she looked at her dragonet, something she had never felt before. She had seen the eggs in Adam's hatcheries, of course, particularly the one that had been stolen by Blake. She had thought them beautiful, and found the dragons to be enigmas. Useful, mysterious beings that would help the Faunus achieve their victory.

This new feeling scared her. She knew that, if not kept in check, her love for this new life would overwhelm the many-year passion that had ruled her since her parents' death. _Never forget that,_ she told herself. _This is all for them. This is to get justice for those who suffered under human rule._

She felt a nip on her hand and quickly handed the dragonet another apple before proceeding to rub it down with a towel. "Justice," she murmured thoughtfully, looking at her dragon's winking, flickering eyes.

…

Mercury rubbed irritably at his face as the misters in the room caused his cheeks to grow moist. Why had he been stuck with the water dragon? On top of teaching the thing to fight and fly, he'd have to deal with teaching it how to swim too!

 _At least they're supposed to be mellow,_ he allowed. _Maybe this one will be quiet._ He knew that he didn't want anything as loud and bombastic as Strike, or as fierce and angry as Brand. He had been all too happy to let Ilia get the fire injection for her egg. _Maybe it'll singe her hair,_ he thought with a chuckle. _Turn her red in a whole other way._

The egg shook. Mercury folded his arms and waited.

It wasn't that he wasn't excited to have his own dragon. The things were freaking powerhouses, after all. Who wouldn't want one loyal to them? He just wasn't sure what to expect. He certainly didn't see himself becoming all doe-eyed and emotional, like most Riders are when their dragon first hatches. He hoped that his dragon wouldn't expect him to dote on it. They would grow up as partners, interacting efficiently and well. That was all he wanted.

Still, even though love wasn't a factor, Mercury did like the idea of having a creature he could trust to always put him first. He wasn't exactly used to people doing that, after all.

Another shake. A crack. Mercury waited.

There was a wet noise as the egg tooth was shoved through the shell, releasing sticky fluids onto the incubator. A large, rudder-like tail pressed against the inside, breaking the rest of the egg and revealing the creature within.

The dragon that emerged was the color of grime at the bottom of a polluted river, its scales shades of sickly green, grayish brown, and even an oily kind of black. Its eyes were white and seemed to look right through Mercury, who shuddered a little.

"Of course, I got the ugliest dragon in Remnant," he muttered.

The dragon tilted its head and squawked, pawing at the shattered shells with a webbed foot.

"Wait, don't do that. You'll cut yourself. That's the last thing I need." Mercury lifted the tiny creature and placed it on a nearby towel. He found the apples and put a few in front of his new dragon, who snapped them up gladly before blinking up at Mercury with its milky eyes.

It had a flat tail, delicate head fins, gills that opened and closed as the misters moistened them, and perfect webbed paws. Mercury nodded once in satisfaction. "Okay. Looks like this will work."

The dragonet tilted its head at him as it contentedly licked apple juice and egg goo from its face.

…

Emerald paced back and forth in front of her beautiful egg, the egg Cinder had given her, the egg that held a dragon who would love and protect her. This was what she was promised when Cinder found her starving on the streets. She would never be afraid again once she had her dragon!

When the first tap sounded, she actually had to cover her mouth to muffle a delighted squeak. Her hands shook as she stared at the twitching egg with wide eyes.

The egg broke open neatly in half. The dragonet had sat back and tossed its head back, striking the very tip of the egg with its tooth. It extended its wings, pushing the two halves aside. It blinked its moss-colored eyes, saw Emerald, and let out a single, demanding bark.

"Of course, sweetie," Emerald cooed, taking a towel and wrapping it around the dragonet. "Let's get you nice and warm, and then we'll feed you." Her voice came out strange and alien. She had never spoken to anything in such an open, loving tone. She had wanted to speak to Cinder in a more intimate way, but there never seemed to be a chance to do so. And there was always the fear of rejection.

This little angel wasn't rejecting her at all. In fact, it cuddled close to her, nipping at her skin and squawking. It scarfed down an apple slice, its claws digging into flesh and drawing blood as it scrabbled to find a sense of balance.

"Jade," Emerald murmured. She had known the dragon's name when she had first seen the pure, earthy-green color of the egg. "My little Jade."

Jade finished an apple and started nibbling on Emerald's fingers, drawing blood and lapping at the iron-tasting liquid.

Emerald would be annoyed at the pain in her fingers and abdomen later. In that moment, however, she would have gladly let her entire hand be bitten off if it made her dragon happy.

She thought of all the times she had gone to sleep alone behind some dumpster or was injured when a shopkeeper's aim was just a little better than her dodging skills. Her entire childhood, she had been hurt, scared, and alone. That was all over now.

 _Thank you, Cinder,_ she thought, tears running down her cheeks. _Thank you so much!_

….

Neo didn't talk to anyone. Despite what everyone thought, it wasn't because she was mute. It wasn't because she couldn't talk. It was because of _how_ she talked.

She had been raised by Roman Torchwick, willingly becoming his right-hand person in crime when she was old enough to fight. A crook needed to be intimidating when facing bigger, stronger people. That was how fights were avoided. That was how respect was earned. That was how a scoundrel lived to see another day.

But her words destroyed any hope she could have had for having that effect on people. If she opened her mouth, she immediately became a dumb child and, while there were advantages to being underestimated, it was much better to be feared. So, over time, she became silent. She spoke only to Roman, who loved her and respected her and assured her on a daily basis that she was a terror to behold when she wielded her small, thin knives and appeared behind a competitive backstabber with ease.

She wouldn't speak to anyone at Haven. She had been thrilled at the opportunity to finally have a dragon of her own (despite Roman's obvious distaste for them), but she had also known that she was putting herself in danger. She owed Cinder, and that would certainly come up if she wasn't able to do her part.

She had to keep playing the part she had crafted for herself, even as she also played the part of a simple student.

When the egg shattered, however, everything changed. When a tiny, squeaking wind dragon with creamy scales with flushes of minty green jumped at her, Neo let out a soft sound of pure joy.

She held the tiny body to her chest, giggling aloud as it squirmed against her and licked at her face. She fed the dragonet as its whip-like tail tickled her hip.

Of course, Neo was quick to recover once she realized her mistake. She clapped a hand over her mouth, waiting for a sign that someone was listening through the door. No one was.

Slowly, she lowered her hand. The dragonet's eyes were blinking inquisitively up at her, as if wondering why she had suddenly gone silent.

Her heart ached. She leaned close, touching her lips to the dragonet's fin. If she was quiet…if she whispered…she could…

"H-Hello, lit-t-t-tle one. Muh-my name is N-Ne-Neo."

The dragon didn't laugh at her. It didn't give her a weird look. It didn't think she was strange or stupid. It just licked her cheek as if to say "Hello to you too!"

…..

 _Present Day_

The dragons of Vale didn't have long to get used to their new guest stalls. As soon as their Riders had unpacked, it was time to explore the Festival. Immediately, it was easy to see the differences between Mistral and Vale.

The streets were much wider, and practically every building had a flat, strong roof specifically designed to hold resting dragons, as opposed to only the dragon-specific stores. Market stalls sold local fruit, plants, and fresh meat cooked fresh both with and without seasoning. Ruby immediately understood why Scarlet had been so jealous that they got to see it.

Storm stared around, marveling at the wide spaces surrounding her, at the thousands of new sights and smells that greeted her every second. She looked up and saw dragons dipping and swooping through the sky, wearing shining bridles and ribbons on their saddles. It was beautiful. Overcome with excitement, she lifted her head and bugled a wordless greeting. Her heart soared when one of the older dragons called down to her in reply.

Ruby jumped at the new noise Storm made, then grinned, recognizing a long-distance call, similar to the ones Tempest would use when she wanted someone to come to the stables. "Making friends already?"

Another bugle sounded nearby, prompting Storm to walk faster and find whoever had called. She paused to make sure Ruby was keeping up.

They rounded a corner to see a first-year dragon and Rider pair. The green earth dragon had been the one to call, and stepped forward to greet Storm. "Hi there," she rumbled. "You're new."

"I sure am!" Storm chirped. "Do you live here?"

"Yep! Nice, isn't it?"

"Definitely! I wish the streets were this wide back in Vale."

Ruby, meanwhile, looked at the girl who stood by the green dragon. "Hi, there. Sorry. Storm's a bit excited."

The girl flashed an easy, friendly smile. Her red eyes held nothing but good humor. Immediately, Ruby felt that this would be an easy person to make friends with. "No problem! Jade's never been around a festival before either." She gave her dragon a look of deep affection.

"I'm Ruby, from Beacon. What's your name?"

"Emerald. I go to Haven, obviously." Emerald cocked her head curiously. "I thought first-years didn't come from other schools to the Festival. Did you get special permission, or something?"

"Uh, yeah," Ruby said, remembering the lie Ozpin had told her to tell until the unveiling. "My teammate is Weiss Schnee, and her ice dragon is the second to ever go through the dragonries. Dragonmaster Lionheart gave them a special invitation, and decided to include the whole team."

"Lucky break for you." Emerald glanced over Ruby's head. "Is that your team's earth dragon over there?"

Ruby glanced over her shoulder toward where Blake was taking a closer look at the stands. "Yeah, that's Pit."

Emerald silently noted the shimmer of the silvery flecks, and the dragon's large size. "He's certainly a beauty!" she said out loud.

"They all are," Ruby said loyally, smiling up at Storm, who nudged her cheek gently.

Emerald grinned. "You know, a kid from Vale could get lost on these streets. Maybe Jade and I should show you around."

"Sure!" Ruby replied immediately, feeling a strange, sharp thrill at the invitation. "What do you think, Storm?"

Storm looked at the easygoing earth dragon, and found no reason to disagree.

Fang, meanwhile, was sniffing the air, his mouth watering at all the strange food smells. He peered at a nearby stall that had meat that somehow smelled of fire, except it was a kind of fire you could eat. He licked his teeth and nudged Yang with his nose.

"Not so fast, buddy," Yang laughed. "You might be a fire dragon, but there's no way I'm giving you chili sauce! Your stomach can't handle that kind of burn."

Fang snorted. He could handle anything! He stepped closer to the stall, barking to get the man's attention. He opened his mouth hopefully.

The man burst out laughing. "You're a dragon who knows what he wants, huh?"

"Sorry about that. Fang, behave," Yang hissed.

"No need to apologize. You know, I have a few roasted meats here that have some dragon-safe spices. Nowhere near as spicy as the chili."

In the end, Yang bought her dragon some beef ribs with a light spice sprinkled on them. She hoped that gnawing on the bones would keep him occupied, so he wouldn't beg for more food.

Fang happily sucked and bit at the meat, holding it in one paw as he tried to hurry after Yang on his three other legs. His tongue tingled pleasantly, though he still wished he could have tried that chili sauce. _Still. This is the best thing I've ever eaten!_ He would definitely save one of the bones to chew on later.

Pit stayed close to Blake, checking her for any signs of increased tension. She had been beside herself after his attempt to save Tornado, and he was determined not to scare her again. He felt her hand on his leg and rumbled comfortingly.

Blake smiled at her dragon, even as she tried to beat down her worries. In the crowded streets, she was painfully aware of how Pit outsized every dragon his age. She hoped that everyone would just assume that he was stronger than usual. But Pit was getting older, which meant that his abilities would grow with him. Ozpin had been able to cover for him after Tornado's execution, but what if something happened in Mistral?

She looked at her dragon, saw the concerned look in his eyes, and forced a smile. It wasn't Pit's fault he was different. It wasn't his fault that he was a hybrid. Blake wouldn't let him carry the burden of her worries. "See anything you like?" she asked.

Pit looked around, his eyes falling on a stall of gigantic, dragon-sized pillows. His eyes lit up at the sight of them and he padded closer, eying a blue and amber-striped one that looked especially comfy.

Blake sighed. "Oh, why not? You deserve a present after these past few weeks." She paid for the pillow and asked for it to be delivered to the guest stalls at Haven. There was no way she could carry that thing around the festival, after all.

Specter and Weiss, meanwhile, had been mobbed as soon as they left the stall area. Everyone was eager to get a closer look at the famous ice dragon, and clambered to touch his cold scales or stare at his black eyes.

Thankfully, Specter was perfectly happy with the attention, sitting down and letting out his signature eerie whistle, which delighted the crowd and drew several gasps from the children. He let people touch his pale blue scales, and bent down to get a closer look at a stall that was selling ice cream. He was thrilled when Weiss bought him a giant piece of green-colored ice to chew on. His excitement increased tenfold when he bit down and found that the ice tasted sweet!

Weiss paid for the melon-flavored ice, smiling at her dragon's obvious joy. Several people were approaching her as well as her dragon, asking what it was like being an Ice Rider, what she intended to do with such a unique dragon, what powers Specter had, etc. She tried to answer everyone to the best of her ability.

At one point, however, a loud voice from the crowd caused several people to turn. "Why is it that only the Schnees get a dragon like this?" It was an older Faunus who had spoken. "I always figured that Dragon Riders were all about equal opportunity, yet your family holds a monopoly on Dust injections, and gets its own designer dragons."

This was something Weiss had been dreading. She already had to deal with jealous whispers from fellow students. Here, it would be much worse. She knew that her grandfather, Nicholas Schnee, had first created Snowflake as a test, and had given her to Willow, who he trusted more than anyone else to determine whether such a dragon should be made again. When Snowflake proved to be stable, Glacier was made just in time for Willow's engagement to Jacques, given as a sign of good faith and acceptance into the family.

Before Snowflake's death and Willow's descent into alchoholism, Willow had told Weiss that Nicholas had wanted ice dragons to become a fifth option at the dragonries, wanted to see five-person teams come of this new species, wanted to see the strength of the Riders increase.

Of course, when he died and Jacques took over, all talk of anyone outside the Schnee family receiving ice dragons suddenly stopped.

Weiss knew she had to be careful. If her father found out that she said something to contradict him in a public setting, she would be in big trouble. Still, she couldn't bring herself to act like she agreed with him.

"Ice dragons are a new breed," she explained. "Only three currently exist, and are only beginning to show what they are capable of on the battlefield. My sister, Winter, is in the Atlesian Flight Squad. As Specter and I train more, we will be able to figure out even more about how an ice dragon should be taught. I do hope to one day see more ice dragons throughout Remnant, being flown by capable Riders."

Her answer clearly satisfied most of the crowd, many of whom were nodding with approval. The Faunus scowled, but didn't push his point any further.

"Huh. Looks kinda like a fancy water dragon up close."

Weiss turned to see who had spoken, and saw a first-year water dragon and who she assumed was its partner. The Rider was staring at Specter with keen gray eyes.

"They are closely related," Weiss said. "Though, ice dragons don't have gills, or the thick tails needed for swimming."

"The frills look a lot like water dragon webbing, but wouldn't they freeze in cold weather?" the Rider asked.

"They actually assist with absorbing oxygen from higher, colder altitudes." Weiss held out her hand. "I'm Weiss Schnee, and this is Specter. It's a pleasure to meet you."

The young man grinned easily as he shook her hand. "I'm Mercury Black, and this guy is Rudder. Welcome to Mistral."

 **So, the idea of Neo having a stutter came to me way back when I first watched the 2017 version of** _ **It**_ **. It's a perfect explanation as to why she never talks, but still has a confirmed voice actor. Also, it's a good chance to have another kind of representation in the show alongside our one and only confirmed lesbian… Until canon proves otherwise, I'm headcanoning her with a stutter.**

 **If you like what you see and want to join an awesome fan community while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	65. The Festival Begins

**RAWR, MUTHAFUCKAS! (I missed the awoos from "Shattered Moon.") We're back with another chapter of your favorite Dragon Rider story. I also have news: Apparently, the** _ **RWBY**_ **manga is now in print. There are going to be four printed volumes, which go into more detail concerning the characters. I've heard rumors that we get some Team SSSN development, and some actual stuff on Ruby and Summer! I know what I'm getting next pay day.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

Ozpin entered Lionheart's office, and wasn't particularly surprised to see only Leo and James waiting for him. Shade went through dragonmasters quicker than any of the four dragonries, and whoever was in charge was usually too in over their heads to leave school and attend the Festival. The most experienced teachers would haphazardly shepherd their students and dragons together and arrive after all the other schools.

It was expected, but still disappointing. For Ozpin in particular, it always felt awkward. After all, out of the three present dragonmasters, he was the only one who still had his dragon. It was something that everyone was very careful to never address.

James stood up, shaking Ozpin's hand and smiling, though his smile was definitely strained. "It's good to see you, Ozpin. I understand that the device is ready for presentation?"

"It is," Ozpin affirmed, not wanting to go into detail concerning the glitches while the overly-nervous Lionheart was present. "When will the announcement be?"

"During the closing ceremonies. We'll end this Dragon Festival with a promise of new and better innovations to come," James said confidently.

Leo cleared his throat. "Erm… What exactly do you plan to do after the announcement? The device bonded solely to a student's dragon. Will we just continue to include first year students in a top-secret experiment?"

"Seeing as how they know everything, and haven't told anyone this entire time, I'm willing to trust the members of Team RWBY," Ozpin said. "After the announcement, development on a second prototype will begin. I'll continue working with Miss Rose and Storm, and figure out what can be improved."

Ozpin sat down in one of the empty chairs, and James sat down next to him. "What I'm concerned about is the state of our first-year dragons." He nodded at Leo. "You've been keeping me up to date concerning the problems your dragons have been having." He turned to James. "But you have been strangely silent."

James coughed. "Because we don't have any abnormalities in this year, like always."

Leo sat forward at his desk, a pained expression on his face. "How many culls did that take?"

James sighed. "A few. Better to kill them early and assign new dragons than to break the Riders' hearts when they're older." He turned to Ozpin. "I understand you had a culling. How's the boy?"

"Not well," Ozpin said honestly. "I don't know if he'll ever be."

"He won't," Leo said, his voice breaking. "No one ever is after that."

Ozpin nodded respectfully at Leo. _You know better than anyone the pain of a student dragon's culling…_ "The opening ceremony is tonight. I suppose we'd best get ready." He smiled at James. "And I understand that the Atlesian Flight Squad will be giving us a very special performance this year."

James nodded, his chest puffing out a little. "Yes. Winter Schnee will be leading the demonstration. Though, it was decided that her involvement would be kept a secret until tonight."

"With good reason," Ozpin chuckled. "Weiss has already dealt with her share of crowds due to Specter."

"Is it wise letting them walk around the festival so casually?" Leo wondered.

"I wouldn't dare begrudge them of that!" Ozpin said firmly. "If it looks like she and Specter are being crowded, we can have the security officers gently move them away. Remember, Miss Schnee is a child at her first Dragon Festival. She deserves to experience it, famous dragon or no."

"And, no doubt, Winter and Steele will look after them when able," James added with a slight smile.

Ozpin noticed the change in his expression. He had seen that look several times over the years. Most recently, he saw it on Taiyang Xiao Long's face when the broodery owner was with his daughters and their dragons. "I understand you have worked very closely with Winter Schnee since she was disinherited."

"Of course," James said, his face becoming stone again, as if he had realized his brief sentimental slip. "She is one of the finest soldiers I've ever trained."

Leo stood up. "Well, if we have nothing else to discuss, let us try and spend some time enjoying the Festival. I hope you find Mistral as hospitable as ever." He bowed courteously. "I wish your students good luck in the contests."

"And yours, Leo," James said, bowing his head before exiting the office, followed by Ozpin. Once they were out, he allowed a slight change in expression. "Ozpin…I was wondering…"

"If you want to know how Glynda is, you could always give her a call," Ozpin said, giving James a knowing smirk.

The general's cheeks flushed. "I…can never be sure if she wants to hear from me."

"Well, you won't find out by glaring at your phone and grumbling to yourself."

"I don't do that!"

"Yes, you do," Ozpin said flatly. "I've seen you do it." When James scowled, Ozpin put a hand on his shoulder. "Just call her."

"I will…if I have time."

Ozpin rolled his eyes.

…..

"And then, boom! Nautilus landed in front of us and drove the fire dragon off," Ruby finished, her eyes bright and her mouth a pure, pride-filled smile.

"No way!" Emerald gasped. "So, you actually _saw_ the fire dragon?"

"Well, not up close. It was a really bright gold color, but that's all I noticed."

 _That's a relief…_ "And that guy was literally wearing a bowler hat and twirling a cane?" Emerald snorted. "Sounds like someone has been watching too many spy movies." _Always the idiot showman. Literally everyone in Remnant seems to know who he is by now._

"I know, right?" Ruby giggled. "But, yeah. Ozpin heard about it, thought I had a lot of potential, and accepted me into Beacon early." She paused to take a sip of the hot chocolate Emerald had bought her. It had a subtle hint of cinnamon and something resembling toffee, and was incredibly delicious. "I can't believe you and your friend also saved a broodery. I wonder how many students are being recruited because of these thefts."

 _That's a very good point,_ Emerald thought, storing that question away for later. Did Cinder realize that she was probably indirectly adding to the population of capable Riders? _Of course, she does. She has everything figured out. She knows they'll all come to her side when the time comes, so she wants the strongest to be going to the dragonries._

"I'm just glad that I got Jade out of that whole mess," Emerald murmured, glancing at her dragon. She didn't have to fake the smile or the gentleness that came to her eyes as she gazed at her beloved dragon.

Ruby cast a similar look toward Storm, who seemed to be deep in conversation with Jade. They already were acting like best friends.

"And when Whisper uses her wing gust, the bamboo whistles and sings. It's the eeriest thing ever!" Jade was saying to Storm, describing a bamboo field that was near Haven. After the recent switch to the open-air stables, Jade had secretly snuck out with Whisper and Rudder. Justice, as expected, had stayed behind.

"Wow!" Storm gasped, trying to picture plants that were as tall as trees, but as thin as a human's arm. "I need to try that!"

"I'll take you there sometime," Jade suggested. "Since we're all in open stalls, we can go wherever we want."

"Wherever we want?" Storm breathed. "I've never gone outside school grounds without Ruby, though."

"There's a first time for everything," Jade said, grinning devilishly. "We should totally check it out. I bet there are tons of ghosts."

"What are ghosts?"

"Dead things that stay behind after they die!"

"Eek!"

Emerald noticed Mercury walking through the stalls, accompanied by the Schnee girl. _Good job._ She stood up. "There's my teammate now! Hey, Merc!"

Mercury waved, grinning. "Hey, Em. I ran into a celebrity on the way here."

Weiss rolled her eyes, though there was an easy smile on her face. "I'm hardly a celebrity. That honor goes to Specter."

Specter whistled cheerfully, though he was slightly distracted trying to get this new water dragon to say more than two words. "Is that your sister over there?"

"Yes."

"Do you get along well?"

"Yes."

Specter sighed. "Not much of a talker, are you?"

"…"

"Well, that's okay. Neither is my friend Titan, though he talks a little more than you. He's a fire dragon," Specter continued, adapting quickly to the fact that he'd be carrying this conversation.

Rudder tilted his head. "Fire dragons like talking."

"Titan's a bit different. He still can't make fire," Specter explained.

"Too bad."

"Yeah, but he's a good fighter. He'll be fine with or without fire." Specter paused. "I hope he doesn't get culled, though."

A shiver went down Rudder's spine. "A wind dragon…Tornado?"

Specter immediately felt his mood sink. His frills drooped. "You heard?"

Rudder nodded. "Riders heard. Talked."

"It was horrible," Specter murmured. _It's only been a few days. I can't believe I actually forgot and started having fun. That's disrespectful, even if I didn't like Tornado._

Rudder reached up with a webbed paw and awkwardly patted Specter's side.

Specter managed a smile. "Thank you."

"You guys should totally hang with us for the opening ceremony!" Ruby said eagerly. "Um, I mean, if you don't have other plans."

Emerald laughed gently. "I'm game. What about you, Merc?"

"Totally," Mercury replied.

"How about we meet by the mochi stand a half hour beforehand?" Emerald suggested. "In the meantime, we'd better check in on the rest of our team. See you guys later!"

"Bye!" Ruby chirped.

"See yah, snow angel," Mercury said, winking as he patted Rudder's shoulder and led him down the road.

Once they were out of sight, Ruby giggled and elbowed Weiss. "Pfft. Snow angel?"

"Oh, shut up!" Weiss huffed, though her cheeks were dusted pink. Normally, she hated when people called her snow angel (along with anything referencing snow and ice that wasn't the title "Ice Rider"), but she wasn't sure whether she had particularly hated it this time.

"Don't think I didn't notice you just now," she noted. "Honestly, you were like an eager puppy."

"Huh?!" Ruby gasped, horrorstruck. "Wait, seriously? Was I too eager?!"

Weiss suppressed a snicker, deciding to be merciful. "No, Ruby. You were fine."

"Oh, thank Dust…" Ruby breathed. "Come on! Let's find the others and rest up our dragons. Tonight's gonna be so much fun!"

It had been years since she'd been to a Festival in person, and she couldn't wait to see the opening ceremony, which consisted of a firework show and a special presentation by the Flight Squads of the four kingdoms. She had seen it from a distance before. Now, as a Rider, she'd get seats right in the arena itself!

Weiss could feel her own excitement building as she and Ruby looked for Blake and Yang. Though, she was less focused on the Flight Squad presentations and more on the potential for one particular person to be there. So little time had passed since Yule, but she already felt the need to talk to her sister in person again.

…..

The opening ceremony for the Remnant Dragon Festival was always an event of special magnificence. Regardless of where it was taking place any given year, the dragonry hosting it, and the visiting Flight Squads, always strove to put on a performance that brought out the best of their region.

Everyone gathered in the largest of Haven's arenas, which was ten times bigger than the largest field for any ball game. Even though there were thousands of spectators, hundreds of thousands, most of them were able to find seats. Dragons perched in a circle on the large platforms and perches that lined the top of the arena, and the shelves that had been carved below. Those who didn't make it into the arena clambered to see what they could from the outside or gathered around giant broadcast screens. All over Remnant, those who were unable to be at the Festival in person watched on their televisions, computers, or Scrolls.

Teams JNPR and SSSN had gathered in the common area with several other students, raptly watching the screen, envying their friends who got to witness the ceremony first hand.

It began with a formal greeting from Dragonmaster Lionheart. "Hello, people of Remnant!" he started, spreading his hands out in a welcoming gesture. "As dragonmaster of Haven Dragonry, I would like to welcome you all to this year's Remnant Dragon Festival!" He paused, allowing the applause to die down.

"Ever since we as a civilization perfected the creation of our beloved elemental dragons, we have known an era of peace unlike any ever seen before! The Grimm are kept at bay from our cities, and the fighting forces of our four united kingdoms are capable of repelling any threat that comes our way!" Another shout of approval.

"This Festival is a time for our four kingdoms to come together and celebrate what we have achieved together! May we continue to prosper together today, and every day after. I wish all competitors the best of luck. Let the opening ceremony begin!"

The cheers were even louder than the fireworks that shot up from the center of the field. Four colors, red, blue, green, and yellow, reflected off the faces of the eager spectators as the traditional presentations by the four kingdoms began.

Just above the booth reserved for dragonmasters and guests of honor, Ragnar rose on his perch. Extending his wings, he let out a deep, ringing bellow that bounced off the stone walls of the arena and shook the hearts of all who were seated there. At the same time, the sky dimmed as the Valean Flight Squad took to the sky.

A ring of wind dragons, sporting every color of the rainbow, from pale blue, to gentle cream, to pure white, flew in a wide circle, their claws skimming the backs of the dragons on the highest perches, all of whom remained perfectly still. High, trilling cries filled the air, sounding like the song of a clarinet. Their Riders controlled their movements with careful, practiced shifts in weight and tugs on the reins. The wind dragons paused, hovering in place and moving just a little higher so that their tails were mere feet above the arena, their wings overlapping perfectly as they flapped and shifted position, creating four gaps in their formation.

Through these came the fire dragons. Twin lines of gold, orange, black, and red shot through the ring like lances. First one, then the other. The first line kept a space in the middle, just big enough for the dragons of the second line to speed through. Bowing their heads, they breathed thick smoke downward, cloaking the bottom of the field. The sharp wingbeats of the wind dragons kept the smoke where it was, away from the spectators, who stared in awe at a column of smoke that rose in the middle of the great ring of hovering dragons.

From this smoke rose the earth dragons, who had hurried into the arena through an entrance that had been restricted to all but them. As they arrived, they flapped their own wings, sending the smoke upward, where the wind dragons took care of it with a sharp blow from their wide jaws.

The earth dragons flew up to join the wind dragons, who started to fly even higher. The fire dragons followed, stopping again to allow their gray, green, and brown brethren to join them. One by one, the earth dragons came to hover near the bottom edge of the circle, looking like tiny leaves sprouting from a pastel-colored stem. As the smoke faded entirely, the fire dragons began to let out fierce, ringing calls that contrasted beautifully with the deep, bass hum that came from the earth dragons.

At that point, Ruby let out a cry of wonder as she finally understood what was happening. "They're making Vale's emblem!" she shouted. Around her, several people let out gasps of realization and started muttering excitedly to each other.

And it was true! The wind dragons had created the outer ring, the fire dragons had made the handles of the twin axes, and the earth dragons made the laurel leaves that rimmed the bottom.

Everyone cheered as the whale-like song of the water dragons finally came. From outside the arena, the blue, silver, and pale green shapes circled, making a second ring around the first one, before gathering into two groups at the ends of the fire dragon lines. The entire formation flew higher and higher until everyone could see the multicolored emblem of Vale floating in the sky for all to see. The song reached a crescendo before stopping, leaving a powerful silence that was quickly overcome with applause.

The Flight Squad dispersed into four groups and departed to where the dragons and Riders would be getting some well-deserved rest.

Everyone stood up and clapped, shouting their approval for the first performance. Ruby's hands stung with how hard she was cheering. "That was _our_ Flight Squad!" she declared proudly.

"That was incredible!" Emerald gasped.

Mercury's face had softened to an expression of genuine wonder. "I gotta say," he muttered. "That was pretty cool."

Yang grinned at Weiss. "Think Atlas can top that?"

Weiss tossed her hair, a confident smile showing through the awe that still decorated her face. "Their performance will leave you speechless. I guarantee it."

Vacuo's performance was next, and it couldn't have been any more different from the stylistic approach of Vale.

Their show, honestly, was chaos. Dragons flew in from all sides, clustering in random spots before coming together in a huge swarm of wings and limbs. Fire shot out from the swarm, streaking the sky and making the whole thing look like a ball of spikes.

The wind dragons shot out the top of the swarm, twirling and feinting as if they were drunk, then fell to the side one by one, barely missing the tops of the arenas as they spun away. The earth dragons dove at the ground, creating cushions of earth at the last minute as they slammed their large feet on the dirt. The water dragons created a mist that obscured everything until the fire blazed past it, and the two remaining elements departed, leaving the arena in sudden silence.

There was a scattering of applause, most of which came from Vacuo's part of the arena.

Ruby, however, was clapping loudly to make up for the lack of applause in the Vale section. "That was really hard to do!" she insisted. "Keeping those dragons in such a tight group like that, I mean. The fact that they could do what they did without anyone getting injured is kinda amazing."

"Vacuo is famous for people doing dangerous stuff on dragonback," Yang noted.

"Too bad something like that doesn't translate well to a visual performance," Blake said, shrugging her shoulders.

Atlas arrived at the arena in a traditional V formation, and Weiss let out a joyful shout when she saw the pale gray form at the point. All around them, people pointed and gasped as the elegant form of a fully-grown ice dragon presented itself to the crowd.

The squad gracefully broke apart in a swirling motion, creating a gentle breeze as the fire, earth, and wind dragons suddenly departed, hovering at the edge of the field in well-ordered groups.

The water dragons that remained began flying in a circle, shooting out jets of water at the ground, though not at the same time. One started the stream, followed by another, then another. As the water dragons began wetting the ground, Steele flew with the water, his claws skimming the ground as a silent, deadly breath of frigid air hit the water before it could seep into the earth. By the time he completed his circuit, there was a perfect ring on the ground. He circled several more times as the water dragons repeated the action, moving in further and further, until a large, thick circle the size of a small building was frozen directly into the ground.

Then, one of the water dragons broke off from the group and joined Steele. The two hovered face to face, bowing their heads over the circle as both of their mouths opened at once. The result, as they slowly flew higher, was a jagged tower jutting from the center of the frozen circle.

This time, it was Weiss who realized what was happening. "They're making a sculpture of Atlas's symbol," she gasped.

The water dragons withdrew, along with Steele, and the fire and wind dragons were next. The fire dragons breathed short, quick bursts of flame against parts of the sculpture while the wind dragons beat at the flames, keeping them restricted to certain areas. The lines of the sculpture became smoother, and a new form started to take shape.

Finally, the earth dragons used their claws and tails to hone the edges, and cut away the parts that the fire dragons hadn't been able to hit, their expressions full of concentration as they remembered the image they had been given in the months of practice beforehand.

When the dragons withdrew, there was a three-dimensional sculpture of the Atlas symbol, with the first ring flat on the ground, the second, gear-like ring standing up diagonally, and the spear jutting upward toward the sky, the setting sun turning the point blood-red.

There were several oohs and ahs as the Atlesian Squad withdrew, especially when Steele did one last circle around the sculpture, letting out a high, eerie whistle that sounded like the ring after a metal weapon strikes a hard surface.

"Well done!" Weiss called, her voice lost in the cheers that followed. "Well done! That was _my_ sister!" she declared proudly.

As Mistral was the host of this year's Festival, their Flight Squad came last. From four directions, the four elements came together. Unlike the other Squads, the dragons here all wore colorful riding blankets, sequined bridles, and saddles that bore long, colorful streamers. As a result, the true colors of the dragons were obscured by the gaudy cloths of red, gold-brown, green, and blue (for the fire, earth, wind, and water dragons respectively).

Two by two, the dragons paired off, always two different elements coming together before breaking off to a certain part of the arena. When a pair settled, they began a complex, private dance that showcased their elements and the elements of their partners. A water and earth dragon would stay close to the ground, making firm, short movements that fit with their thick-set statures. Wind dragons enfolded fire dragons in their larger wings, then flew backwards as a warm puff of flame gently warded them off.

It was like each pair of dragons was engaged in a complex, almost flirtatious ritual, the showiness of which being further emphasized by the fluttering streamers and sparkling sequins. When they parted, it was as if each dragon left their partner reluctantly to rejoin the cluster of their fellow elementals. They bowed courteously to the crowd and flew off, the streamers trailing behind them.

There was a standing ovation at the end of the last performance.

"It was like a ballet," Weiss noted. "Not what I'd expect from a Flight Squad demonstration."

"No, but I liked it!" Ruby declared.

"You liked all of them," Yang pointed out.

"Well, yeah." Ruby looked at Emerald and Mercury. "Which one did you like best?"

"Vale," Emerald said immediately. "That emblem display was way cool!"

"I liked Vacuo," Mercury admitted. "Something about chaos just draws me in, you know?" His eyes sparked dangerously, and he was aware of the fact that Weiss had noticed.

 _Who would've thought we'd be going with the tag-team flirting approach,_ he thought, noting how Ruby's eyes lit up when Emerald stated her preference for Vale. _We didn't even plan it beforehand! Shows how in sync we are, much as Emerald tries to deny it._

After the performance was the firework show, during which most of the crowd left. Compared to the Flight Squads, fireworks seemed suddenly unimpressive. Besides, the students needed to get their dragons to bed.

The RWBY dragons stumbled a bit as they were led to their stalls. All were stunned, excited, and wholly content.

"That's gonna be me someday," Storm decided. "Ruby and I will be in the Vale Flight Squad, and do awesome performances just like that!"

"You should," Pit said. "Though you'll have to practice your flying a lot more."

"Oh, I will!" Storm said, bobbing her head. "I'll become even better than Nimbus!"

"I need to talk to some of those Vacuo dragons!" Fang's tail lashed eagerly. "Did you see how tough they looked? All lean and muscled… I bet they're great in a fight!"

"Steele is the epitome of grace and beauty!" Specter lamented. "How can I ever hope to be that incredible when I grow up? I mean, I know I'm good, but I'm not that good!"

"You will be," Pit assured him. "You're not even a year old yet, and Steele's been a Flight Squad dragon for years."

"That's true…"

The dragons talked until late into the night, as did their Riders. All fell asleep fitfully, eagerly anticipating the coming of the next day and their first true taste of competition.

 **This was such a fun chapter for me. Descriptive writing is my forte, and I loved coming up with ways for the different kingdoms to show off their Flight Squads. Next week, we'll be checking in on Teams JNPR and SSSN.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	66. Viewing Party

**Rawr, everybody! This week's chapter sees us back in Vale. Enjoy!**

Soon after the opening ceremony viewing in the crowded common room, Team SSSN's room was turned into the site of a very enthusiastic Dragon Festival viewing party. Teams JNPR and SSSN spent most of the night preparing for the next few days. All projects and homework that had been assigned previously were finished. All mini fridges were packed with snacks, many of which were homemade by Ren, Scarlet, and Sage.

During the first day, a Monday, the eight teens were wholly devoted to being glued to Pyrrha's flatscreen. Whenever they weren't in classes, they were watching the Festival, hoping to catch a glimpse of Team RWBY.

Just then, they were watching a new beauty contest exclusively for members of the new pigmy dragon species. Nora giggled as the tiny, silver-freckled dragons were led in a circle in one of the smaller arenas. "They are pretty cute," she admitted.

"Hopefully, they get enough mental stimulation, and aren't just treated like designer pets," Ren noted, frowning a little as he looked at the fancy collars, tail rings, and bangle bracelets that the dog-sized creatures wore.

Pyrrha was sitting on the floor next to Jaune, cuddled contentedly against his side as they shared a bowl of popcorn. It was amazing how simple and natural this position felt.

Their "talk" about the change in their relationship, which happened a little after Team RWBY left, lasted a grand thirty seconds.

Jaune had been holding her hand as they walked back from the stalls and suddenly asked: "So…are we a thing now?"

Pyrrha had squeezed his hand gently as she responded with another question. "Do you want us to be?"

"Yeah!" Jaune's response had been immediate, and he belatedly wondered if it had been a little too quick to say something. "I mean, sure. I mean…"

Pyrrha had silenced him with a kiss on the cheek. "Good. Me too."

Scarlet and Sage were even closer, with Scarlet curled up in his boyfriend's lap. This was rapidly becoming his favorite position to be in. As the pygmies were shown, he wondered aloud if he could find a fancy collar like that for Nimbus.

"No doubt you could," Sage murmured. "But how much would it cost?"

"Ugh. I wasn't asking for your logical statements, Sage," Scarlet huffed, rolling his eyes before snuggling closer, giggling when Sage kissed his forehead.

Neptune felt pang after pang of envy as he watched the two couples. Even Ren and Nora, who technically weren't "together-together" (though honestly, there were several bets concerning how long that would remain true), were nestled close out of sheer familiarity.

If only it was that easy for Neptune. He'd be able to scoot closer to Sun, who was only a foot away, munching contentedly on some chips. He could brush his friend's wrist with shy fingertips, feel that firm, warm hand grasping his own. Then Sun's tail would come up and wrap snugly around his waist…

 _Stop!_ he thought, firmly quashing his fantasy before it could get out of hand. _Don't start being weird again._ Even though Sun's interest in Blake had apparently waned down to friendship, the likelihood of him returning Neptune's feelings was probably somewhere between zero and as if.

"I wonder if the pygmies are as smart as elementals," Sun said, looking at the dozy expression of a pastel-pink one. "I mean, they do have Dust in them."

"I'd be willing to guess that they're smarter than broodies, but not as smart as full elementals," Neptune decided. "I mean, they use just enough gravity Dust to keep the dragons from growing too much, and there's really no other purpose for them."

"They could be good for other things," Sage said thoughtfully. "If they're more intelligent than broodies, they're probably more intelligent than dogs. They could be used as law enforcement units, or for search and rescue missions that require a more delicate approach."

"Like if someone is buried in an avalanche?"

"Exactly!"

"This actually does remind me of a dog show," Jaune realized as he watched the judges examine a green and blue-patched pygmy. "How can they tell what the standard is for the breed? Pygmies only became a thing last year!"

"Pfft. Standard." Nora rolled her eyes. "If a dragon's healthy, that's standard enough."

Ren felt a pang as he suddenly realized something. "I suppose watching is all Riders like me can do. If I ever put Ao Guang in a show, his gill deformity would immediately be discovered."

There was a moment of silence as everyone digested this information. "That applies to Titan as well," Pyrrha sighed. "Unless he develops his fire abilities late."

"Twiggy's obviously a runt, so there's no hiding that," Jaune muttered.

"Same with Nimbus's eyes," added Scarlet. "Anyone can see they're messed up."

A somber cloud descended on the eight as memories of Tornado's death pierced their minds like needles. The same question was on all their minds: "What will happen as our dragons grow older? Will the Council order more culls? Who will be next?"

Without a word, Jaune reached for the remote and turned off the television. "I suddenly want to go play with Twiggy."

The others agreed, and hurried to the stables.

The first-year dragons were all outside, still drinking in the novelty of being allowed to just walk out of their stalls whenever they wanted. During the weekend, Riders had been encouraged to go out without their dragons and let them get used to wandering independently. Already, several of the earth dragons had taken to paddling in the mud pools. The fire dragons scuffled on the dry grass. The water dragons rolled around in the dew-covered stones in the morning. The wind dragons climbed the sides of the cliff that stood near their stable, and looked down from the dizzying heights with wide, eager eyes.

The eight found their dragons in the huge stable yard, which was an expanse of grass dotted with trees, shrubs, and a few ponds, and stretched for three square miles before ending at the Emerald Forest.

The dragons were all in different states of play. Twiggy was encouraging Zircon to play tag with her and Titan. Nymph sat next to a dozing Freya, watching the others with a calm expression. Huo was curled up on the ground, sulking due to Fang's absence. Nimbus and Ao Guang were rolling about in the grass, trying and failing to play-fight.

At their Riders' calls, the dragons stopped what they were doing and stampeded over, causing the ground to shake under their large, growing paws.

Sun laughed as Huo headbutted him to the ground. "Easy, buddy! You're getting too big to do that!"

Huo snorted. "No, you're just getting wimpy!"

"Huo, be gentle," Nymph chided. "Sun doesn't have scales." She turned to Neptune, softly nuzzling her Rider's cheek.

Neptune laughed as Nymph's snout tickled his skin. "Hey, girl. I see you're enjoying the open space."

Nymph warbled happily, thumping her large tail on the ground.

Twiggy was purring as Jaune hugged her around the neck. "He had to jump this time!" she noted to Titan. "I'm definitely growing!"

"You sure are," Titan agreed, lowering his head so that Pyrrha could scratch him under the chin.

Zircon licked Sage's hand timidly, his eyes drawn toward a figure walking slowly across the field. He swallowed loudly when he saw who it was. "M-Mudslide…"

The others turned. Sure enough, Mudslide was wandering around the field on her own, looking strangely pensive. She sat down, stood up, glanced at the other dragons, stood up, turned away, and sat down again.

The Riders followed their dragons' gazes and also noticed Mudslide. "You think she's okay?" Jaune asked.

"She's probably still in mourning," Pyrrha guessed. "Dragon siblings are very close, after all."

Twiggy's ears twitched. "Maybe we should go over and try talking to her."

The other dragons gaped at her. "Are you shitting me?" Huo snorted. "After all she did to you?"

"Her brother was killed!" Twiggy snapped. "I feel bad for her, even if she is a bully!"

"You have a big heart, Twiggy," Titan noted. "But she may not want to talk to us."

"Pit knew how to talk to her," Zircon muttered. "I wish he was back."

"I could look for Barracuda or Tank," Nymph suggested.

Jaune noticed a human figure approaching Mudslide. "It's Sky."

The group watched as Sky walked over to the earth dragon. Without hesitation, he wrapped his arms around her neck. The shaking of his shoulders was obvious, even from a distance. Mudslide's wings unfurled and wrapped around the former Wind Rider, hiding him entirely from sight.

Teams JNPR and SSSN quickly turned away and walked further down the field, suddenly feeling like they were intruding on something very intimate.

"Mudslide's been pretty off lately," Twiggy noted. "She's not just sad. She's angry, but a different angry from when she attacked me before. She growls whenever Cardin tells her to do something, and she doesn't seem to be trying hard in class anymore."

"I'd growl at Cardin too if I was her!" Ao Guang snorted. He glanced over his shoulder, feeling a large amount of pity for both her and Sky. "I wish I could cheer them up." An idea occurred to him. "Maybe Cardin will go away, and Sky will be Mudslide's new Rider, and everyone will be happy!" He bounced up and down at the thought.

"I don't think that'll happen," Nymph sighed. "Even though that would be nice."

"Sky comes into the wind stables a lot," Nimbus said, his fins drooping sadly. "He talks to all of us, but he seems completely out of it every time. And he's stumbling… Maybe he's not eating right."

"Or sleeping right," Freya suggested.

While the dragons chatted in a language their Riders couldn't understand, their scales and claws were casually inspected for any dirt or blemishes. Of course, they were in perfect condition.

"I might get Freya some claw polish," Nora said, looking at her dragon's paws. "She's so lazy, she'd probably hold still the whole time I was painting them."

 _If you paint them quietly, you'd better believe I'm not moving!_ Freya thought, yawning and curling herself around her Rider. It was still a little chilly, after all. The small human probably needed a shield from the cold.

Ren watched Ao Guang bouncing in a circle around the others, a soft smile on his face. "I wonder if there are toys that help dragons exercise on their own."

"I'm sure there are, but Guang certainly doesn't need any help!" Pyrrha chuckled.

"I don't think any of them do." Neptune smiled fondly at Nymph. "Right, Nymph? You're developing all your swimming muscles perfectly!"

Nymph bobbed her head proudly, her eyes glittering at the easy smile on her Rider's face. He still flinched at the first contact with water, and his movements were very stiff, but he was improving. Within a few months, Nymph was willing to bet that Neptune would be totally over his fears. She hoped so, because swimming was so much fun, and she desperately wanted to enjoy it with her beloved partner.

Huo stiffened, letting out a warning growl as he noticed a familiar water dragon approaching with her Rider.

"Russel," Pyrrha greeted, inclining her head.

"Hey," Russel muttered. "Um, you guys know that one Faunus girl, right?"

There was a pause. A fearful jolt went through all eight of them. Had someone let slip Blake's secret? 

"You know, the one with the rabbit ears," Russel continued. "What's her name…?"

The collective sigh of relief was barely contained.

"Why are you looking for her?" Sun asked, his tail lashing. "Wanna see if you can actually take her ears off when you pull them this time?" His eyes flashed angrily.

Russel winced. "No. I, uh…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Dove and I have been talking. Ever since we started distancing ourselves from Cardin…I dunno, it's suddenly super clear how much of an ass he is. And how assholish we've been, you know?"

Pyrrha quickly realized what he was getting at. "You want to apologize to Velvet?"

Russel nodded. "Yeah. I mean, she probably won't forgive me, but she should know I won't be acting like an ass to her anymore."

The Riders looked at each other with mild surprise, though it was certainly a pleasant surprise. "She's at the Festival now, but we'll tell her you want to talk to her when she gets back," Jaune promised.

"Cool," Russel muttered. "Well, I'm gonna go. See yah."

Barracuda was regarding the other dragons coldly, unsure of how else to be around dragons that apparently weren't her enemies anymore.

"Hi," Ao Guang ventured, though he remained several paces away from his former bully, distinctly remembering several past injuries.

Barracuda blinked once, and nodded just barely before following her Rider toward a distant pond.

Pyrrha shook her head. "It's a shame it took such a tragedy to get them to start changing for the better."

"Hopefully, there won't be any more." Jaune put a protective hand on Twiggy's shoulder, closing his eyes as his dragon nudged his arm gently. "I'll keep you safe, girl."

Twiggy purred, though there was a tremor of apprehension in her voice. Sky was tough, and he hadn't been able to protect Tornado. There were clearly forces at work that were more powerful than her Rider. She wished she knew how to just make them disappear forever.

One glance at the others told her that they were thinking similar thoughts. However, for their Riders' sakes, the dragons continued to warble and purr and act like they still believed that their Riders could easily fix every problem that came their way.

 **Our little dragonets have become disillusioned with the world. It's a tragedy that happens to everyone. Next week will have some Festival contests, and a moment with Ilia and her dragon. See you then!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	67. Stealth and Rebellion

**RAWR, everybody! Dragon Tuesday is here again, and it's currently hotter than a fire dragon's scales where I live. Seriously. I'm currently wearing a wet towel around my neck so that I don't overheat. Air conditioning is a wonderful thing, folks. Appreciate it if you have it.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

During the Festival, the nights never became truly dark, due to the several parties being thrown throughout Haven. Still, a single moving shadow was even less likely to be noticed than it would be on an ordinary, darker night. Everyone was too preoccupied with buying this or that accessory, eating yet another ice cream cone or funnel cake, or poring over the shiny, new programs that detailed what all would be happening during the week.

Ilia had little trouble making her way past the dozy night guards and "Restricted" signs to where the various news stations were. She went from system to system, passing her Scroll over each computer. A dim picture of a black chess piece was visible on her mostly-darkened screen. She rolled her eyes as she looked at it. _Of course, she would use the queen. What an egomaniac._

Still, she was getting results. Adam had contacted Ilia just before the arrival of the other schools at the Festival, informing her that the White Fang had its first hybrid. All they had to do was keep playing nice until they had just a few more and were strong enough to break away from Cinder and pursue the goals they were meant to be taking care of.

Or, maybe they would stick with Cinder until after she overthrew the Council, and then overthrow her right afterward. Either way would work, honestly.

Once she had scanned all the information she needed, she crept back toward the exit. One of the guards stretched and yawned, and she pressed against the wall, her skin and hair melding with the gray wall. Her stealth outfit, which was designed to look like dappled shadows, made her practically invisible.

After a minute of stillness, she continued on her way, sneaking away from the restricted area and back toward the school. She could have brought casual clothes to make the walk back to school easier. No one would question someone her age walking around the stalls. Still, she didn't want to talk to anyone, and this was good practice.

She didn't stop with her camouflaging until she was right outside Justice's stall. The fire dragon shifted on his bedding. He had heard her come in. _Clever boy._

Slipping into the stall, Ilia placed a hand on her dragon's leg, and was met with an accusing glare from his red-orange eyes. "I know," she murmured. "I know I haven't taken you down to the Festival like I promised. Things have changed, though."

Justice growled, turning away again. _Rudder and Jade got to go. Why couldn't I? I can handle the stupid humans if they try anything._

"Listen," Ilia urged. "Someone is here, someone who defected from the White Fang. If she sees me, our plan will be jeopardized."

 _Again, with this plan,_ Justice thought, his ears twitching with irritation. _Why can't we just kill the humans and be done with it? No need for Faunus and humans to be equal if there aren't any humans. Then, I could go to the Festival in peace!_

He didn't really mean that, of course. He hated humans, because Ilia had told him how bad they were, and he would gladly maul them if necessary, but he had yet to meet one he wanted to kill.

He didn't even want to kill his siblings' Riders, even though doing so would finally allow him to talk to his siblings properly. If they didn't have humans to report to, he wouldn't have to hide from them. But he couldn't kill the Riders. His siblings would never forgive him for that. He knew that much.

Ilia pressed herself against Justice's side. "I had to withdraw us from the contests too."

At this, the fire dragon let out an enraged roar, moving away from his Rider so that she fell on the floor. "Are you kidding me?! Don't I get to do anything?!"

"I'm sorry!" Ilia groaned as she stood up, suppressing the desperation that tried to creep into her voice. She couldn't show too much vulnerability, or Justice would sense it, would take advantage of it, and try to get her to change her mind. "I'm sorry, Justice. We need to make sacrifices now, so that things will be better for both of us later on. It'll be worth it. I promise."

Justice didn't look at her. He just glared at the ground sullenly.

Ilia sighed. "Fine. I'll drop by tomorrow." Without another word, she left.

Justice placed his head on his paws. He wanted to talk to someone, but there was no one to talk to. At Ilia's insistence, he had kept his distance from the other dragons. Why was that required for this "greater good" she was always talking about?

He let out a long, smoking sigh before getting up and trudging outside. He noticed a few new fire dragons milling around the scorched exterior of the fire stable. _The foreigners._ He watched them thoughtfully. Maybe, just maybe, it would be okay to talk to one of them.

When he moved closer to one, however, he realized that he had no idea what to say and stopped short. The larger dragon turned its mighty head in his direction, fixing him with a blazing, orange stare.

"Got something to say, hatchling?" the dragon rumbled in a deep bass voice.

Justice suppressed a shiver, instead standing up straight and trying to show the pride he was supposed to feel as a dragon fighting for a mighty, if secret, cause. "My name is Justice, not hatchling. What's your name?"

"Java," the older fire dragon replied. He bent down to get a closer look at Justice. "Hm. You look fit. Are you gonna be in any if the competitions?"

"Um…" Justice didn't want to say no and lose Java's interest. "Maybe?"

"Maybe?" Java snorted. "That's not much of an answer."

"My Rider is…sick," Justice lied quickly. "She got sick right when everyone started showing up." A slight growl entered his voice. _Scared sick, more like it. What can one person she used to know do?_ "I wish she'd deal with it better. It's not that bad."

Java's expression became very stern then. "It's no good competing if you aren't both at the top of your game. And you shouldn't think badly of your Rider. They come first, after all."

"I know," Justice grumbled. It seemed that all he ever did was put Ilia's commands first.

"Don't worry," Java continued, his voice becoming less harsh. "The first-year competitions don't really mean much, anyway. Mostly beauty contests and basic stuff you already do in class, or so I've heard. The real fun starts in your second year."

"Yeah?" Justice perked up a little.

"Yeah." Java gently cuffed the younger dragon. "So, don't dwell on it too much. I'd better rest up for tomorrow. Hope your Rider gets better."

"Thanks." Justice watched the second-year dragon return to the guest stalls and let out a sigh. He wasn't tired at all, and he wouldn't be competing tomorrow. What could he do?

That ugly, sickly feeling of anger at his Rider hadn't lessened. In fact, it was deepening and focusing until one very clear wish was in his mind: He wanted to rebel, if only a little. He would go see one of his siblings tonight!

After a moment's consideration, he decided on Rudder. The water dragon wasn't very talkative or responsive, so he likely wouldn't reveal anything.

Even though he was allowed to roam, Justice couldn't help feeling a little guilty and nervous as he made his way to the water stables. What if someone saw him? _No one else knows of Ilia's orders, idiot. As far as they know, you're a regular dragon visiting his brother._

He found Rudder inside the third barn, and gently nudged him awake. The ugly water dragon's white eyes blinked slowly open, then widened with surprise.

"Hey," Justice muttered. "Can we talk?"

Rudder sat up, looking at his estranged brother with confusion. "We aren't allowed."

"I know, but…" Justice trailed off, his wings drooping as he suddenly realized how stupid this was. "Forget it." He started to turn away, only for a webbed paw to touch his flank.

"We don't have to talk," Rudder muttered, his sleepiness slowly fading away and being replaced with something that resembled hope.

Justice felt his face relax into its first real smile in days.

The two walked outside and sat down in a patch of grass further away from the misters of the water stable. Rudder stared up at the sky, easily picking out the few visible stars that managed to win out against the onslaught of lights from the Festival. Justice wrapped a wing around his brother, heating up his scales. Rudder shifted a little in surprise, then leaned against Justice's side contentedly.

There were many things Justice wanted to say. He wanted to rant about how he was being kept out of the Festival. He wanted to ask about the dragons Rudder and Jade had met that day. He wanted to finally talk about the strangeness of their divided Riders. He didn't, though. Rudder might leave if he did, after all, and he didn't want that.

So, the two brothers sat in silence as the sparse visible stars made their slow journey overhead.

…..

Weiss couldn't stop fussing over Specter in the minutes leading up to the beauty contest. She kept checking the new silver halter she had bought him for any blemishes, examining his scales to make sure no dirt had gotten on them, or looking at his teeth, making doubly sure that there were no bits of meat or fruit in them.

Specter rolled his eyes as Weiss did yet another examination. _She's flightier than a wind dragon!_ When she came back around, he nudged her sharply, snorting in annoyance.

Ruby giggled from nearby. "Looks like he's telling you to stop worrying."

Weiss fixed her hair primly before folding her arms at Specter. "Now, Specter. This is your first real contest. I'm just trying to make sure we make a good impression."

"He looks fine," Blake assured her. "And, so do you." She glanced at the silver-embroidered shirt Weiss wore, along with the new white leather riding pants. Before, she would have scoffed at such obviously-expensive clothes, but she couldn't deny that they looked good. They also complimented Weiss's hair and Specter's scales and halter.

"Thank you," Weiss said, her tense expression softening slightly.

Specter nuzzled her shoulder before looking excitedly toward the large stage where each dragon would be led up to be examined. This contest had to have been made for him. He was clearly the prettiest dragon in all of Remnant. _Well, after Steele, perhaps._

The first warning bell for the contestants rang, and Weiss quickly waved to her team before leading Specter to the backstage area. The contest was held on a large, sturdy stage with a huge screen showing the results. Every seat in the audience had a place to hook up one's Scroll and download the poll. The dragon who got the most votes won. Since beauty was a hard thing to judge, especially when judging various species, the beauty contests were some of the only ones that didn't have official judges and relied solely on audience participation.

Weiss and Specter took their place in the line and chanced a look at the other dragons. Among them were a pure red fire dragon with gold eyes, a sleek silver water dragon with just the lightest dusting of turquoise freckles on its nose, and a sharp-eyed wind dragon the color of new butter. Many of them had ornaments and jewelry, and Weiss wondered if she should have bought something extra for Specter.

She looked up at her dragon and was struck by how regal he looked in that moment with his head held high, his tail curled just so, and his black eyes fixed on the curtain. _No,_ she thought. _Specter doesn't need any accessories. He's already perfect._

The duo watched as pair after pair was led out. As the dragons showed off for the crowd, an announcer gave commentary on the contestants' best qualities. Finally, the stocky, handsome earth dragon next to Specter was called. The ice dragon took a deep breath, readying himself.

"Next up: Weiss Schnee and Specter, the ice dragon!" This announcement was met by especially loud cheers.

The two stepped out, and the cheers hit a fever pitch. In an instant, Specter was in his element. Stepping forward, he bowed gracefully, bringing one of his wings around with a flourish, similar to a human male's bow.

"Look at the grace of this creature! The poise! The elegance!" the announcer gushed.

Weiss and Specter started walking along the stage, Specter clearly strutting everything he had. When they paused, he tossed his head.

"And can we just stop and look at those scales? I have never seen a prettier shade of pale blue anywhere. It perfectly contrasts with the deep, unrelenting black of his eyes. Such an ethereal, mysterious-looking beast."

At the end of their stage time, Specter spread his wings and let out a long, eerie whistle before retiring with Weiss. The crowd went wild.

After all the contestants had their chance, they were brought back out to the front to watch the results get tallied on the board. Specter's numbers were rising fast, but so were several others. Weiss waited, biting her lip in agitation.

Slowly, slowly, the numbers stopped. Specter had won second place. An emerald-green wind dragon with sapphire-colored stripes won first prize.

She tossed her head, a smirk of confidence on her muzzle. "Don't feel too bad," she muttered to Specter. "Those scary eyes are a huge disadvantage. It's a shame they aren't as pretty as your Rider's, or you would've been a shoo-in, I'm sure."

"Uh…" Specter didn't know how to respond. He felt as if he had just been simultaneously complimented and insulted. Was that even possible? _Scary…?_ He had never thought about his pure black eyes before. He knew that Weiss had named him for his eyes, which resembled a ghost, whatever that was. Were ghosts scary? Was he scary instead of handsome? His frills drooped.

Weiss patted his nose. "You did very well, Specter. Second place is something to be proud of." She knew that her father, and probably Winter, would disagree, but that didn't matter. Specter had done his best and had been judged by a crowd. Nothing more could be expected. She was concerned when his mood didn't improve during the walk back to the stalls.

….

As soon as the other members of Team IMEN left, Ilia hurriedly took out her Scroll, putting it on a special setting that would keep Cinder from tracking anything. She honestly didn't put it past Cinder to put things like trackers on the Scrolls of her scout team.

There was only one ring before a familiar, deep voice answered. "What's the news?"

"Adam, Blake is here," Ilia hissed. "And she has the hybrid earth dragon."

The pause that followed was thick and seemed to be filled with poison. "What school is she representing?"

"Beacon."

"I see."

Ilia fidgeted a little. "Should I…approach her?"

"No." Adam's response was immediate. "Just keep an eye on her. Has she seen you?"

"No, I've kept hidden and withdrew from the contests."

"Good. Keep to the plan. Do the grunt work Cinder wants. We won't be under her thumb for long."

"What about Blake?" Ilia asked. _If anyone can talk to her, it's Adam. Maybe he can convince her to come back._ Despite her anger at her friend for leaving, the love she felt was far stronger. Even if it meant Blake fawning over Adam again, Ilia wanted her back with the White Fang. Anything was worth that.

"Let her enjoy the Festival," Adam replied, his voice disconcertingly cold. "I think I'll wait for the right time…and then pay her a personal visit once she's back in Beacon."

 **Oooh. Can you smell the drama? I'm sure you can! Next week will be more Festival fun. After that…there will be even more fun. Yes. Fun. That is what will be had by you, the readers.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	68. Contests and Coffee

**Rawr, everybody! This week sees our heroes enjoying the Festival and our favorite villains making some preparations!**

 **Enjoy!**

"Come on, Storm! You can do it!" Ruby shouted as the dragons came around the track, kicking up dust, sneezing when they put their heads too close to the ground. "You're almost there! Come on!"

Emerald and Jade were standing nearby, watching the foot race. The course was essentially set up like that of a horse racetrack, except bigger. Emerald hadn't bothered entering Jade, as earth dragons aren't exactly known for being fast runners. She couldn't help but notice how Ruby's cheers never wavered, even as Storm fell further and further back.

The white wind dragon was the fifth to cross the finish line, after two other wind dragons, a fire dragon, and a very sleek water dragon. Her fins drooped as she slowed down and padded back over to Ruby.

"Good job!" Ruby patted her dragon's dusty brow. "Fifth place on your very first foot race! You really are amazing."

Almost immediately, Storm's disappointment was replaced with pride and she perked up, warbling cheerfully. She trotted after the other racers to where two adult water dragons were hosing them down, washing the dust away. Several fire dragons grumbled when it was their turn.

 _Wow,_ Emerald thought as she watched Ruby, who was still beaming proudly at her dragon. _She got Storm's mood from zero to a hundred with just a few words. Maybe there is something to that silver-eyes myth._ At first, she had only wanted to get close to Ruby in order to learn more about the ice dragon and the hybrid earth dragon, but now she was starting to think she had found an incredibly promising recruit for Cinder's cause.

Only time would tell, she supposed.

Storm came back just as Ruby was handed a pink ribbon, which she proudly put on her dragon's halter. "My first prize!" She beamed, tossing her head so that the ribbon swung back and forth.

"Congrats," Jade said with an easy smile. "I still haven't won anything yet."

"You will! Just keep trying," Storm chirped.

The two Riders led their dragons toward a sparring ring, where Yang and Fang were supposed to meet them. As they walked, Emerald was asking Ruby about the dragons at her dad's broodery.

"York lost his Rider, and an eye during a fight with a pack of Beowolves," Ruby explained. "He wouldn't move or even acknowledge anyone for over a year. After we got Caboose, though, he got some life back. He's still really sad, but he acts more like a fire dragon sometimes."

"I always thought it was only the big brooderies that took in dragons like that," Emerald said.

"Well, most brooderies are a main source of money for whoever owns them, so they're actually less likely to use up stable space on dragons that can't produce eggs," Ruby explained. "Dad still fights Grimm. The eggs from Church and Tex help with the income, but it's not the biggest part of it. He'd rather help another dragon than try making more money."

"Huh." This guy sounded like someone who genuinely cared about dragons, unlike the dragonmasters, who only cared about dragons when it was convenient. "That's very decent of him."

"He's the best," Ruby said proudly.

They reached the sparring ring and were able to see Fang pinning a larger earth dragon to the ground. He leaped on top of his opponent, roaring loudly in the other dragon's face, before reluctantly joining Yang at the edge of the ring.

Yang looked up from dabbing a scratch with an alcohol-soaked cloth. "Hey. I see Storm did good in the race."

"She sure did!" Ruby declared. "How's Fang liking the sparring?"

"I don't think he'll ever leave," Yang said dryly.

"Storm, you gotta try this!" Fang was saying eagerly, wincing as Yang dabbed at his cut. "This is the most fun I've ever had."

Storm shook her head. "You go ahead without me. Fighting is your thing."

"It'll be your thing too, once combat training starts," Fang pointed out.

"I…don't really want to think about that…" Storm muttered, glancing to the side.

"Don't worry," Jade assured her. "Fighting comes naturally once we're older, or so I've heard. And our Riders will only make us fight people who deserve it." She already looked forward to fighting off any enemies of the cause Emerald kept telling her about. "And big scary monsters who all deserve to die. We'll be killing a lot of those."

"M-M-Monsters?" Storm swallowed loudly.

Ruby jumped when her Scroll buzzed. She opened it to see a message from Ozpin. "Uh, I need to go," she said, smiling apologetically at Emerald and Yang. "I'll see you guys later." She called Storm, who walked with her back to Haven Academy.

Waiting by the guest stalls were Ozpin and a man Ruby had seen in the newspaper before.

"Miss Rose, this is General Ironwood," Ozpin said, nodding to the man. "He's one of the top people involved with Penny's creation."

"Nice to meet you, sir," Ruby said, nodding politely.

"Likewise," Ironwood replied. "I understand that there were some issues with the unit last time you used it."

"Yeah, the light flickered a few times, and she asked to stay on Storm's head longer." Ruby frowned. "This won't hurt Storm, will it?"

"I checked the inner workings, and everything seems to be in order," Ironwood said. "For the unveiling, we'll have it plugged into the speaker systems, so we wanted to test out how it'll react to that."

"We're ready to go!" Ruby quickly took Storm's ribbon and hung it up in her temporary stall before leading her dragon after the two dragonmasters.

Like at Beacon, they ended up at a spot behind the larger stables, the fire one in this case. A single speaker, identical to the ones used in the arenas, was set up there. Ozpin took Penny from her case and placed it on Storm.

Ironwood watched with interest as the metal spread over Storm's back and legs. "Looks like the size adjustment mechanism is working fine."

"Salutations," Penny said. "Awaiting Rider command."

"Hey, Penny," Ruby greeted. "We're going to be doing something new. Ozpin's going to plug you into another system, so you'll be able to talk really loud to several people."

The light blinked once. "Auxiliary cord plugin authorized."

Ironwood took the cord and plugged it in on the left side of Penny. The light turned yellow and blinked rapidly.

"Reading… Device recognized." The light turned green again.

Ozpin then turned on the speakers, putting it to a low setting. "Have her say 'Test, test, one, two, three.'"

Penny obeyed, and the voice came from the speaker clearly.

"Perfect!" Ozpin sighed. "That's all we need."

The light turned back to yellow. "Is there not more I can do to assist you?"

"Ruby, have it detach," Ozpin said.

"Command: Detach," Ruby said obediently.

"Acknowledged…" There was a definite sullen tone to Penny's voice as she was taken off of Storm.

Storm warbled sadly. That session had been too short. Penny hadn't wanted to leave. As she watched the older humans talk about what to do next, she couldn't help but wonder if mechanical beings like Penny were also subject to the same unfair rules that dragons were.

….

"And then the guy was like 'Oh, I'm so sorry, sir! I thought those were your real legs!'" Mercury took a sip of his coffee, feeling a flush of satisfaction at the genuine laugh his story elicited. _She's so eating right out of my hand._

"What did you do then?" Weiss asked, still chuckling a little.

"I just walked off and left him standing there awkwardly. Sometimes, that's the most satisfying thing you can do." Mercury shrugged. He glanced out the window of the coffee shop they were relaxing in. "What's up with Specter? He seems a bit glum."

Weiss looked outside, letting out a sigh. Specter's frills were droopy, and his gaze was downcast, just as it had been that morning. "I hoped he'd be better today. I think he feels bad about not getting first prize at that beauty contest yesterday."

"Competitive, isn't he?"

"He takes after me," Weiss admitted. "Members of my family are expected to be very…driven." She paused to sip her latte. "I've been trying to tone that down both for my sake and his. As long as we can fight Grimm and protect people, it doesn't matter how many ribbons or trophies he earns."

"Good point," Mercury said, nodding his head. _Huh. Wasn't expecting something like that from her. This priss and her designer dragon may actually fit in with our cause. It'd be nice to not have to kill them, I suppose._

The two finished their drinks, and Mercury stood up. "Well, I'd better get Rudder ready for the junior swimming race. Wanna come with?"

"Thank you, but I'm actually meeting Blake here in a little while," Weiss admitted. "I thought it would be convenient for us to talk here in the meantime."

"Well, glad I ran into you." Deciding to go all-in with his flirtatious approach, Mercury leaned against the table with a casual grin. "So, how about a kiss for luck?"

Weiss's cheeks flushed, but she kept a calm smirk on her face. "I would, but Rudder doesn't seem to be the kissing type."

Mercury let out a laugh, a brief, real one this time. "Good one. Later, snow angel."

After he left, a voice nearby piped up: "Didn't think you were such a flirt."

Weiss looked over to see Blake standing by the booth, arms folded and an amused smile on her face. Her cheeks flushed further. "I'm honestly not. Sometimes, I just come up with the perfect thing to say at the right time."

Blake sat down across from her, holding a mug of tea she had already purchased. "So, do you think he likes you?"

"I can't tell," Weiss admitted. "He seems to be the type to casually flirt with people, so I'm not taking it too seriously."

"But, you're still having some fun with it," Blake finished, taking a sip.

"Well, yes." Weiss glanced at the table. "This isn't my first Festival, but it's the first time I've been able to wander around and do as I please. Things like eating fair food, staying up late, flirting with boys… I didn't get to do that before."

Blake nodded in understanding. She hadn't been able to do much of that in the past either, though for different reasons. "The fact that your dad would probably hate Mercury doesn't hurt either, I'll bet."

Weiss allowed herself a coy smirk. "I will neither confirm nor deny that."

The two continued to sit in companionable silence until Weiss got up to get another coffee. She also brought back two scones. "Might as well," she said. "They're homemade, after all."

"Thanks." Blake took a bite out of hers. It was warm and coated with cinnamon sugar. She glanced out the window. "Specter still looks depressed."

"I'm hoping he'll get better. I don't know if entering him in more contests would be a good or bad thing for him."

"I already decided not to enter Pit in anything," Blake said. "It'll be pretty obvious how much bigger and different he is from the other earth dragons if he's being closely examined right next to them."

"I mean, it is publicly known that he hatched earlier than the other first-years, and I'm pretty sure I've seen pictures of dark silver earth dragons, so you might get away with it." Weiss shrugged. "But, it's your choice."

"I've just been really on edge since he pulled that stunt with the Council," Blake sighed. "I don't blame him for doing it, but that was too close."

"I just hope that was the only culling we'll witness." Weiss stared into her mug. "Everything about that was just so wrong. I've never come across something that was perfectly common and legal but felt so…disgusting." She felt a shadow of that about her own situation with her father, but she knew that Jacques put on a good act in public, and that most victims of abuse just aren't known about by people. That was an issue of ignorance and not enough action. What happened to Tornado felt like nothing short of a government-sanctioned murder of a child.

"I have." Blake leaned back. "In a way, the fight for Faunus rights mirrors the fight for dragon rights. Did you know that there was a time when Faunus could be hunted like animals?"

"Surely, that was a long time ago, during the more superstitious times before civilization really picked up." Weiss's heart sank when Blake shook her head.

"It wasn't as long ago as that." She looked at Weiss with a grim smile. "The world sucks, and it always will to a certain level."

"We'll work to make it better," Weiss insisted, reaching across the table to touch Blake's hand. Gestures like that still felt strange to her, but it somehow felt right in that moment. "You know I'm on your side."

Blake's expression softened, her cheeks warming slightly in response to Weiss's hand, which was also surprisingly warm. "I know. Thanks."

Weiss withdrew and finished her coffee and scone. "Should we walk for a bit? Our dragons look bored.

Outside, Specter was letting out yet another long, whistling sigh. "Seriously, Pit. What other creatures have you seen with pure black eyes."

"We've only seen a few birds, squirrels, and a dog in our lives so far!" Pit grumbled, his patience wearing very thin. "And squirrels have black eyes, at least they look like they do."

"Do people find squirrels scary?"

"Why would they even-?"

"Okay, boys," Blake called as she led Weiss out of the coffee shop. "Let's go."

As they walked down the road, Specter continued his lament. "I have rodent eyes! That's why I didn't win."

"You won second place, Specter!" Pit snapped. "If you were downright horrifying, you wouldn't have even placed."

"So, I'm only slightly horrifying!"

"I will have Fang rip your tongue out if you keep on this tangent! Then, you really will look scary!"

"You're so cruel…"

…..

Cinder looked lazily at her Scroll, smiling as the picture of the black queen chess piece pulsed, signaling the addition of more files, more connections, more ammo. Everything had been connected and programmed correctly.

 _It looks like that little chameleon has her uses,_ Cinder mused. _It would be nice if I could get her out from under Adam's thumb._ She filed that thought in the back of her mind for the time being. There were more important things to focus on.

Tomorrow was the last day of the Festival, and the unveiling of the unit.

The next phase in her plan was about to begin.

 **Dun dun DUN! What could Cinder be planning? Will Specter ever grow to love his gorgeous ghost eyes? Stay tuned!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	69. The First Battle Cry

**Rawr, everyone… This is probably a terrible chapter to tell you guys this, but I have decided to put "Wings of Dust" on hiatus as of the beginning of July. While I do know what I want to have happen overall in the story, the details of how to get there from where I currently am are not coming to me. I've hit the end of my outline and typing backlog chapters has started feeling more and more like a chore. I'm in severe danger of pumping out halfhearted filler chapters, and you guys deserve better than that. So, I'm going to step back, outline a bit more, and puff out the backlog. I'll try to get back on track with this as soon as I can. Thankfully, I do have enough backlog for the rest of the month, so you will get a few chapters in the meantime.**

 **That being said, enjoy!**

Cardin sauntered into the earth barn at the beginning of the day, oblivious to the glares targeted at him from many dragons who were already very familiar with the kind of person he was. He rapped his fist against Mudslide's stall. "Hey. Wake up already."

He noticed with some satisfaction that the stable hands had actually changed her bedding and refilled her food and water dishes. There was no litter area, as the dragons were now old enough to use the fertilizer pits that sat at the very edge of Beacon's border, near the forest. _Good. The help is starting to catch on. Training does take consistency, as Dad always tells me._

His smile faded, however, when his dragon stood up. As Mudslide's wing lifted, it revealed another form lying in the bedding.

Scowling, Cardin walked over and kicked the lump, which let out a grunt. "Hey! Who said you could sleep in my dragon's stall?" He took a step back when the lump stood up, revealing itself to be Sky.

"Sky?! Dude, you look like shit." His nose wrinkled. "You don't smell much better. Don't stable hands get time to shower?"

Sky dusted himself off, glaring at Cardin, not bothering to disguise the hatred in his eyes. "Like you would care. You didn't even try talking to me after I ended up out here."

Cardin shrugged. "Not my fault you dropped out."

"I didn't drop out. My dragon was killed, or have you already forgotten that?!"

"Dude, chill." Cardin held up his hands, flashing an easy grin. "Okay, you didn't drop out. That mean you're gonna take a new egg next semester? Good for you. I knew you'd get over it. Hopefully, you won't get another retard."

He took Mudslide's harness and put it on. "Close your mouth, dummy," he muttered, whacking Mudslide's suddenly-lax bottom jaw, nodding once when she quickly snapped her mouth shut.

"It sucks, though," he muttered as he attached the lead. "You'll have to start all over again. I swear, if I had to go through dealing with a squawking reptile baby again, I'd kill myself. Too bad they don't just give us our dragons when they're full-grown and actually useful, am I right?"

He turned around, just in time to see Sky's fist before it smashed into his nose.

…..

The closing ceremonies for the Remnant Dragon Festival consisted of a show of basic military maneuvers by the Flight Squads, and another massive firework show. Afterward, the Squads settled in the arena. Weiss was thrilled when she saw Winter descend from the dragon perches to sit with her. She hadn't gotten to speak to her at all throughout the week due to their busy schedules.

Winter glanced at her sister, allowing herself a small smile before devoting her attention to the center of the arena, where Dragonmasters Ozpin and Ironwood were waiting for silence.

Mercury and Emerald sat nearby, Emerald looking around curiously. "Where'd Ruby go?"

"You'll see," Yang muttered with a mysterious wink, staring intently at Ozpin.

"Excuse me," Ozpin said into the microphone. "I know everyone is eager to pack up and prepare to go home, but I ask for your attention for a little while longer. I promise you won't regret it. You are, after all, about to witness a crucial moment in the history of dragons and people."

The crowd became quiet after that, except for a few confused murmurs.

Ironwood took the microphone from Ozpin, who left to fetch Ruby and Storm. "For the past two years, Atlesian scientists, including the great Doctor Geppetto, have been developing a device, something that will not only revolutionize the training of dragons for combat, but the communication between a dragon, its Rider, and any who come into contact with them!"

As Ruby and Storm emerged, he continued. "Young Ruby Rose of Vale, and her wind dragon Storm, were selected out of many qualified first-year pairs to show the flexibility of this device, and how beneficial it is to the development of the next generation of Dragon Riders."

Ozpin opened the box, holding up the plate. "This tiny plate, as you will soon see, expands when connected to the dragon's brow, doubling as a flexible suit of armor. Electronic pulses connect the machine directly to the dragon's mind, so that mental cues can be interpreted and amplified."

Storm was trembling, staring at the crowd with wide eyes. She didn't like being in the center of this arena. She hoped that Penny would be able to calm her down.

"Easy, Storm," Ruby whispered. "You're doing great." She tried to appear confident, and not at all put off by the blatant lie Ironwood had just told.

The plate was placed on Storm's brow, and the familiar voice greeted them. "Salutations. Detecting a large number of organic presences, as well as high stress levels. Combat mode activated."

"No, Penny!" Ruby hissed. "It's fine. We're showing you to a bunch of people. Nothing to worry about."

"Acknowledged. Salutations, Ruby. How may I be of assistance?"

Ozpin let out a silent sigh of relief. The device seemed to be working. "First, we will show you how this device aids in development, and in basic attacks. Ruby, have Storm demonstrate her wing gust, then have her fly."

There was a great deal of muttering at this. "The dragons are still learning to fly," Emerald muttered. "Even the wind ones are still mostly gliding."

"Just watch," Yang said with a grin.

Ruby gave the order, and Storm stood up on her hind legs.

"Executing. Wing gust." Storm flapped her wings, creating a gust that blew back several people in the front rows.

Storm landed on all four paws as Penny spoke again. "Assisting with flight. Engaged!"

The wind dragon allowed her mind to surrender to the mechanical voice completely and found herself running toward the crowd before spreading her wings and taking to the sky. She did a single lap, not even noticing the wind in her face as she allowed Penny to experience it fully this time.

 _This is glorious!_ Penny thought.

 _I'd like it better if there weren't so many people staring…_ Storm replied, skidding a little as she landed after circling the arena once.

"Finally," Ozpin continued, "We will show its most fascinating feature: By reading brain waves and interpreting them into spoken words, this device will allow dragons to speak directly to us!"

There was a collective gasp in response to this.

Ironwood took a cord leading from the amplifiers and brought it over to Storm. He patted her cheek gently as he plugged the cord into the port. "Good girl," he murmured.

Ruby patted Storm's shoulder before hesitantly accepting the microphone from Ozpin. "I would like to communicate directly with Storm," she said, reciting what she had been taught to say. Ozpin had thought that saying Penny's name might not be a good idea.

"Acknowledged." Penny's voice echoed through the arena before the light flickered.

"They're all just staring- Whoa, that's loud!" Storm jumped back, her head fins trembling as her words were amplified through the speakers.

"Easy, Storm," Ruby urged. "You're doing great. How are you feeling?"

"Kinda nervous," Storm replied, glancing around. "Are we almost done here?"

Ironwood took the microphone. "Almost. First, would you choose a volunteer from the audience, preferably someone you don't know, to come down here and talk to you for a few minutes? Then, you will be done."

"O-Okay." Storm looked around for a moment before noticing a little girl sitting in the front row with her parents, staring at her with a delighted expression, a cream-colored tail wagging back and forth. "Um, the small Faunus over there."

Ozpin and Ironwood exchanged a smile as the family came down. Storm choosing a child was probably the best thing that could have happened. Since children ask such unpredictable questions and say the most random of things, it would be hard for anyone to argue that any of this had been pre-recorded.

The Faunus family, who looked absolutely stunned at their luck, approached Storm. The father held the little girl in his arms, whispering excitedly to her.

Ruby smiled. "You can pet her."

Obligingly, Storm moved closer so that the child could stroke her snout. "Hi, there," she said. "What's your name?"

"Maggie," the girl replied as Ozpin held a microphone close to her. "Your name's Storm!"

"That's right. Did you like the Festival?"

"Yeah! Mommy took me to the mochi stand. Do you like mochi?"

"Never tried it," Storm admitted. "My friend Specter gave me some of his snack yesterday, though. Melon ice. It was super good!"

"I like strawberry best."

The two talked cheerfully for a few minutes. When Maggie brought up her pet cat, Storm eagerly talked about Zwei. The little Faunus was delighted to hear that Storm's favorite color was also red. It honestly looked as if the two would easily be able to talk for hours.

Ozpin moved away from the girl with a smile after a few more minutes. "I think that's enough. Thank you very much, Maggie."

Maggie waved goodbye to Storm as her parents led her back to their seats.

Ozpin turned to the crowd. "We will now retire Storm, and accept any questions concerning-"

He was interrupted by a sound like an unbearably loud static crackle, followed by a rush of light along several cords, including the one leading to the plate. Storm reared up, roaring in pain as she felt the shock go into her, then fell forward, lying still on the ground. Penny had seized up and wasn't letting her move.

"I have a question."

Everything was silent. That voice had come from the amplifier, but it wasn't Penny's voice. At the same time, the screens overhead that were showing what was happening in the arena changed, showing a static picture of a black chess piece on a red screen.

"My question goes to Dragonmaster Ironwood," the voice said. It was modified, so it was impossible to tell if the speaker was male or female. "How many dragons that didn't meet your standards did you kill at the beginning of the first semester? How many infants fresh out of the shells had their skulls cracked on a hard, stone floor, so that you could then incubate a replacement?"

Ironwood's face turned bright red with rage. He listened to his earpiece for any news concerning what was happening, but his people were just as confused as he was.

"No answer?" the voice continued. "Very well, then. How about Dragonmaster Ozpin? How does it feel putting yourself on a pedestal, advertising yourself as a protector of dragons, when you are really nothing more than a lapdog who will bow before anyone to keep your precious position?"

Ragnar stood up from his perch, letting out a loud, enraged roar.

Ironwood cursed. "Enough of this," he muttered. He moved to unplug the cord, only to get sharply zapped by another surge of electricity.

"How rude. Trying to shut me up when you haven't answered a thing," the voice taunted. "Don't worry. I won't be long. My last question is to every person here, everyone who claims to love dragons: What would you do to protect these beautiful creatures, who trust us and love us unconditionally? Would you fight for them? Would you sacrifice riches, prestige, and your place in society for them? Because I promise any dragon would do that for its Rider, and for any other human or Faunus it cares about."

"Or," the voice continued. "Are you like the dragonmasters who cower in the face of a Council that sees dragons as replaceable commodities? Are you like Ironwood, who kills infant dragons if they so much as have the sniffles? Are you like Ozpin, who only recently stood idly by while a first-year dragonet was killed for having a temper tantrum? Or, are you like Lionheart, who chose to keep bowing to the very Council who murdered his dragon?"

Lionheart visibly winced, making a strangled noise in his throat.

"I'd say something about Vacuo's dragonmaster, but I don't see him. And…I honestly couldn't say who their current one is." One could almost picture a human shrug in that voice.

"Think about these questions, people of Remnant. Think, and figure out what side you're on. A revolution is coming, and it will be the dragons and their allies who will emerge victorious. As for the Council of Dragon Affairs…" The voice then became deadly and filled with unsuppressed rage. "You murderers will be the first to go."

The screen went black, and Storm collapsed on the ground with a groan.

Ruby hugged her tightly. "Penny, detach! Detach now!" She pulled the cord out and threw it to the side.

"Ruby, I hurt…"

"I know, Storm, I know," Ruby cooed.

"I'm…not Storm."

"Penny? Penny, you need to get off. It's the electricity. We need to heal Storm and fix you. Detach, please!"

"Acknowledged." The armor retracted into the plate, the light went out, and the plate dropped into Ruby's outstretched hand.

"Miss Rose," Ozpin called over his shoulder, his voice almost lost in the almost immediate din that followed. "Take Storm into the tunnel and wait for me!"

Ruby hurried into the tunnel under the arena with Storm, just as the alarms started to ring.

"Alert. Grimm attack on border. Threat level: seven. All Dragon Riders please report to the following coordinates…"

Just as the darkness closed around Ruby, she felt a sharp tug as a pair of hands suddenly snatched Penny from her. "No!" she shouted. "Storm, someone just grabbed Penny!"

Storm let out a roar, which only served to cover up the footsteps as the thief retreated.

Ruby hurried down the tunnel, bursting through the exit, where there was already a mob of people being herded back to their hotels. She tried to see whoever had come out, but there was no way to pick them out in the crowd. She sank to her knees, her heart dropping.

"I just lost the most important piece of technology in Remnant…" she muttered, shaking her head slowly, disbelief written across her face.

Storm sat down next to Ruby, draping a protective wing around her, letting out a long, sad keen. _We didn't just lose that,_ she thought mournfully, remembering the joy and sadness she had felt whenever wearing the plate, the emotions that had come from Penny and Penny alone. _We lost a friend._

…

Twiggy was playing with her siblings when Mudslide approached her. Instinctively, she hid behind Titan, who hissed a warning at the approaching earth dragon.

"I'm not here to fight," Mudslide growled. "I just have a question for you."

Twiggy exchanged a glance with Titan before hesitantly coming out from under his wing. "What question?"

"What did you do?" Mudslide asked, digging her claws into the ground. "What did you do to make your Rider love you? What did any of you do?!" She looked at each of them, growing more frustrated and puzzled by the second. "A runt, a fireless fire dragon, a water dragon without gills, and a wind dragon that sleeps all day. What did you do?"

The dragons exchanged an uncomfortable glance, unsure of what to say. Mudslide, however, had plenty to say.

"I'm a perfect earth dragon. I'm not deformed at all. I do what I'm told. I know how to fight." Her tail thumped on the ground. "So, why? Why doesn't my Rider love me? What else can I do?!"

Twiggy took a step forward. "Cardin's not a nice human. That's not your fault."

"It is, though," Mudslide snarled. "I chose him, didn't I? When I hatched." She shook her head. "How was I supposed to know? I was a baby. I don't even remember my hatching day. How could I have known?"

All four of the JNPR dragons were looking at her with sad expressions. It was Titan who spoke first. "I'm sorry."

Mudslide sat down heavily. "Maybe I deserve it. Maybe I'm a lousy dragon."

"You are not!" Twiggy insisted. "I mean, since you stopped being a bully, you're not."

"I let Sky beat him up," Mudslide said, her voice coming out hollow. "Sky started beating up Cardin, and I didn't do anything. I just watched. I watched my Rider get hurt and didn't do anything." She looked up at them, her green eyes wide with fear. "I enjoyed seeing him get hurt! What does that make me?!"

Before any of them could say anything, Mudslide abruptly got up. "Shouldn't have said anything…" She walked away, still muttering under her breath.

Twiggy swallowed loudly. "Can a dragon hate their Rider?" she asked. The idea seemed so weird, so foreign, so impossible.

Ao Guang scratched at his neck. "Looks like they can. I wonder what made Sky hit Cardin."

"I hope he broke his face!" Twiggy growled, surprising herself with her anger.

"Maybe Mudslide'll break his face," Ao Guang suggested.

That idea was immediately met with silence as the dragonets digested it. If Mudslide hated her Rider…was that a mental problem? Would she really attack Cardin one day?

Would another CRDL dragon be culled by the Council before the year ended?

The dragonets thought and wondered, unaware that, miles away, a battle cry was sounding, one that would have a direct effect on the rest of their lives.

 **Let's be real: Ya'll were waiting for Cardin to get punched in the face, weren't you? As you can see, I didn't kill off Penny in this version, nor did I make it as apocalyptic as Volume 3. That comes later.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	70. Blackmail and Bad Tidings

**I am so sorry, everyone! I fell asleep right after I got home last night, and totally forgot to post this chapter. My brain's been totally scrambled lately. Hopefully, it's just the heat.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

The flight back to Vale after the Festival was silent. It was an oppressive silence, that of a heavy fog slipping into several throats and blocking any and all sound from escaping.

Ruby sat next to Yang, leaning into her older sister's strong, familiar, warm, comforting form. She didn't sleep, because closing her eyes would force her to relive that split-second of disappointment, that look that had come to Ozpin's face right before he schooled his expression for her sake. She had seen it, though, in that brief moment. It was a combination of disappointment, regret, anger, and a deeper realization that this common goal of theirs had been irrevocably set back.

"It wasn't your fault, Miss Rose," he had insisted. Minutes later, Ruby overheard Ironwood yelling, asking why on earth Ozpin hadn't thought to take the device from Ruby before sending her away.

"It slipped my mind. I was focused on getting the crowds calm and taking Ragnar to the border!" Ozpin had shouted, though his voice rang with shame and regret.

"I'm starting to wonder just how competent you really are. Maybe the Council is on to something with replacing you."

Ruby had rushed away, unable to listen anymore.

Storm had been inconsolable, communicating only in sad whimpers and sniffles. She was probably the only one who knew just how alive Penny had been. Now, the machine was gone, and the sentient being she knew was inside it would never get the chance to see the world.

Teams JNPR and SSSN were waiting for their friends when the airship landed. They had seen what happened on TV and were all hugs and expressions of silent comfort when Team RWBY got off the ship.

The dragons were also milling about, talking amongst themselves.

"Too bad I wasn't there," Huo said puffing out his chest. "I would've killed that thief!"

"I'm more interested in the voice," Nymph murmured. "What exactly did it say?"

Storm, Fang, Pit, and Specter recited, to the best of their memories, what the voice on the loudspeakers had said.

There was silence as the dragons digested the information.

It was Huo who spoke first. "So, where do we sign up?"

The others gaped at him. "What are you saying?!" Nymph gasped.

Huo yawned, stretching out his wings. "Seems like this mysterious voice cares more about dragons than the Council does. And these dragonmasters sound like a bunch of pussies. Killing hatchlings and following orders from the people who killed their partner…I say screw them!"

"If they're so good, why did they steal Penny?" Storm snarled.

Behind her, a rumbling voice said: "They aren't good."

The dragonets all jumped guiltily, spinning around to look up at Ragnar.

"If I am correct," the old earth dragon continued. "These are the same people who injured Qrow and Salty. Whatever they say their ideals are, they are dangerous."

"Isn't a little danger worth it?" Pit asked, very aware in that moment of his own status as an illegal hybrid dragon. "If it means preventing another culling?"

A shadow of regret passed over Ragnar's face. "You must choose your battles. Some may seem noble but will actually make things worse in the long run." He looked at all of them, Pit in particular. "Leave this to the adults. Focus on your studies and become the best fighters you can be. That's all you can do." He walked away, pausing on his way to his stall when he noticed Ozpin talking to Glynda Goodwitch. His partner let out a visible sigh before hurrying toward the school.

The students, meanwhile, took their dragons into the yard to spend some much-needed quality time together.

….

Cardin was already in the waiting room when Ozpin returned to his office. Sporting a black eye, a swollen jaw, and several bandaged cuts, he waited with his arms spread across the backs of three chairs, his legs spread out, and an expression of utter unconcern decorating his bruised face.

Ozpin braced himself for the worst as he opened his door and allowed Cardin to take a seat in front of his desk.

It was a good thing he did, because the first thing Cardin asked was: "So, are you firing Sky, or what?"

Ozpin folded his hands. "I beg your pardon?"

"One of your workers attacked a student," Cardin pointed out. "Not exactly professional, don't you think?"

"You do remember who this 'worker' is, don't you?" Ozpin asked, his eyes narrowing. "I do believe he was your friend and teammate, who is currently suffering severe emotional and mental trauma due to losing his dragon." Ozpin sat back. "That being said, he has been placed on temporary probation, and has been given a warning against engaging in such actions again."

Cardin scowled. "Not good enough, if you ask me. And why am I even here, anyway? I'm the victim, here."

"You are here for several reasons, Mister Winchester," Ozpin replied sternly. "First of all, the stable hands have reported that you have stopped with your feeding and cleaning duties entirely, leaving your dragon's care entirely up to them."

"Isn't that what you're paying them for?"

"No. I am paying them to provide care to the broodies, to clean and feed when Riders are absent, and to maintain the barns and their food supplies," Ozpin replied. "And, as you are not absent or sick, there is no reason why you should not be doing your duty in caring for Mudslide."

"Hey, I got other stuff to do!" Cardin protested. "Maybe if your profs didn't assign so much freaking homework."

"Which you frequently never do," Ozpin finished, his face taking on a definite deadpan expression. "Most of your free time, I have noticed, has been spent bullying other students, who don't seem to have a problem with caring for their dragons or completing their academic assignments."

"Are you going to harp on that again?" Cardin groaned. "It's called off-the-record training. Those wimps'll thank me for making them and their dragons stronger."

"Don't act like you do this out of genuine love for any of the dragons here," Ozpin snapped, his fists clenching. He paused, taking a moment to regain his composure. "The other reason," he continued, his voice shaking with the effort it took to keep calm. "The other reason you are here is that you have proven yourself to be utterly incompetent at leading your team."

"Says who?!"

"Says your team," Ozpin said dryly. "Apparently, you were wholly unsympathetic toward Sky when he lost Tornado and when Tornado was first put under scrutiny, blatantly talked about the 'expendable' nature of dragons _in front of your own dragon_ , and have driven the remaining Riders on your team to ask to be put into solo classes early. That's on top of the reports of bullying toward other students and neglect toward your dragon, which I already mentioned."

Cardin glared at the ground, already plotting just how badly he'd injure Russel and Dove when he left this office.

"This is very serious, Mister Winchester," Ozpin said. "And, if this continues, I will be forced to have Mudslide taken away from you."

Cardin gaped. "You can't do that!"

"I certainly can. I have held off on such drastic measures, due to the natural bond that forms between a dragon and Rider (a rather onesided one, in this case). A dragon being separated from its Rider causes great emotional trauma, which is better avoided in most scenarios. However, if this keeps up, I may decide that I'd rather invest in counseling and a nice broodery for Mudslide than in your further education at my school." Ozpin leaned forward on his desk. "Do I make myself clear?"

Cardin glared at him for a long moment, before suddenly sitting back with a short laugh. "You're bluffing. They'd cull her if you took her from me."

"She is stable, young, and has no visible disabilities," Ozpin said. "Between that, and the documentation I possess concerning your behavior, humane relocation would be all too easy."

Cardin sat there, grinding his teeth. Then, his expression suddenly turned into an easy smile as something occurred to him. "For her, maybe."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow, keeping his expression cool even as his heart sank. He did not like that tone or that smirk. "Excuse me?"

"Mudslide may be fine, but what about the other dragons here?" It was Cardin who leaned toward the desk this time. "Look, Ozpin. I go to school here. I'm a Beacon Dragon Rider. So, I have a certain sense of loyalty for this place. My dad always taught me to be loyal to a commanding officer, you know."

"Go on," Ozpin muttered.

"If you kicked me out and took my dragon…" Cardin shrugged. "I wouldn't have much reason to be loyal to you or this place, and I may feel an obligation to do my legal duty and talk about certain things I kept quiet about before out of that loyalty I just mentioned."

Ozpin narrowed his eyes, waiting for him to continue.

"Tornado was a crazed lunatic," Cardin said. "That's why he had to go. But, what about the other useless dragons that should probably be replaced? What about the runt? Or the gill-less reject? Or the fire dragon with no fire? I know all of them. I know their names. And I know the phone number to reach the Valean branch of the Council."

"Are you trying to blackmail me, Mister Winchester?" Ozpin hissed, standing up slowly. "Because, if you are…"

"You'll expel me on the spot?" Cardin stood up, still smirking. "Unless you want a whole lot of dragons with spikes in their skulls, I wouldn't advise that."

"What about Barracuda?!" Ozpin asked, hating how desperate his voice sounded. "You know she'd be culled too due to her paws! Would you really betray Russel like that?"

"Sounds like he already betrayed me." Cardin turned and, without waiting for permission to leave, opened the door. "I think we're done here. Glad we understand each other…dragonmaster."

The door closed, and Ozpin just stood there, stiff as a board, his fists clenched and shaking, his eyes blazing with unrestrained fury under his glasses. Then, his hands opened. His knees gave out and he fell onto his chair with a grunt. Putting his face in his hands, he started to weep.

…

"So, how cute was that girl?" Nora asked, nudging Ruby, trying to change the subject to something happier.

A tiny smile returned to Ruby's face. "She was really pretty, and super nice. She gave me her number before we left."

"Oooh," Nora crowed.

"Look at my little sis," Yang chuckled, punching Ruby's arm lightly. "Taking after our uncle."

"Am not," Ruby protested, her cheeks flushing bright red.

"Did you try to set them up, Storm?" Twiggy asked. "I bet Ruby's the next one to get with someone!"

"No way," Ao Guang huffed. "Ren and Nora are gonna be next."

"No, it'll be Neptune and Sun," Nymph insisted.

Huo snorted. "Not a chance. Your Rider's too much of a weenie."

"Hey!"

"What about you, Weiss?" Sun asked. "Did you exchange numbers with that Mercury guy?"

"I did," Weiss admitted. "Though, I don't think anything will come of it."

They talked for a little while longer before the tired RWBY dragons were retired to their stalls. Just as Ruby was walking away, she heard a gentle rumble from Storm's throat.

"Rrrrr." Storm decided to try again. Meringue had told her that she should be able to do this by now. "Rrrrr…"

Ruby patted Storm's nose. "What is it, girl?"

"Rrr… Rrrrrr… Rrrrroo!" Storm finally said.

Ruby's mouth dropped open before she hugged her dragon tightly around the neck, squealing excitedly. "OMIGOSH! Storm, you are so smart! I love you so much!"

Storm rumbled proudly. Even if she had failed at the Festival, she was glad she could make her Rider happy this way. "Rrrroo. Rrroo. RRROO!"

Later on, the three teams went to Junior's club, which was packed with students just coming back from the Festival. While most of the others went to dance, Ruby, Blake, and Weiss sat at the bar, sipping their non-alcoholic beverages, sitting with their backs to the bar so they could watch their friends make fools of themselves on the dance floor.

They were stopped when a familiar "Psst" sounded behind them.

Turning around, they saw Junior staring at them intently. He leaned over the bar. "You know that Adam Taurus guy?" he asked without preamble.

Blake's blood went cold. "Yeah?"

"He knows where you are. Keep your eyes open and get out of town if you can." Then, just as quickly as he had been there, he was off taking an order while polishing a glass with a clean rag.

Blake nearly fell out of her stool. This news felt like a physical blow to the stomach. Her breaths became short. Her hands shook as her face turned hot. She let out a loud gasp.

Ruby immediately rushed off to find the others while Weiss wrapped her arms around her teammate.

"Hush, now. Take deep breaths," she urged, hating how frail Blake felt as she trembled in her arms. "We won't let him near you. We'll go home right now and tell Ozpin. He'll know what to do."

"He won't," Blake sobbed. "He won't! Adam will- He'll-" She shook her head, unable to say anything more.

She was familiar with how patterns like this went. Everything was starting to unravel. Tornado's death, the Festival, the theft of Penny, and now this were small moments leading to something even bigger and even more horrible.

Sooner or later, everything was going to fall apart.

 **Clearly, Cardin could have used a few more punches. Next week will be the last update before the hiatus. You'll get to see Sky, along with another character I've been waiting to bring in.**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	71. A Deal in the Dark

**Rawr, everyone! Today is the last chapter before this fic's hiatus. I think this is a good stopping point, as stopping points go.**

 **Enjoy!**

As Team RWBY fell back into schedule with their classes, several changes became apparent. By now, all of the freshman dragonets were having regular flying classes. The wind dragons were already practicing flights around Beacon and wearing weights to stimulate a Rider. Most enjoyable, or annoying in some cases, of all was that the dragonets were finally learning to form human words.

It was very revealing. Some dragons simply tried saying their Riders' names. Others provided insight to the kind of vocabulary they often heard.

When Barracuda let out a loud, perfectly-articulated "Fuck!" during class one day, Russel couldn't have been prouder. Glynda was decidedly not amused and reported the incident to Ozpin, who tried very hard not to start laughing when he asked Russel to try and rein in his dragon's language.

After class one day, Neptune rushed into the stable yard, where the rest of his team had already met up, followed closely by Nymph. "Guys! Guys! Guess what?"

Sun glanced up, smiling at the genuine joy and excitement on his best friend's face. "What's up?"

"Listen!" Neptune turned to Nymph. "Go on, girl. Say it again!"

"Nnn…" Nymph wrinkled her snout in concentration, desperately trying to make Neptune happy again. "Nnneh."

"Did you hear that?" Neptune practically squeaked. "She said the first syllable of my name!"

"Good for you, buddy," Sun commended. "I'm still waiting for Huo to say something. I'll bet money that he'll cuss out Professor Port once he figures out how."

"Too bad Barracuda beat him to the first one," Neptune snickered. "That was hilarious!"

"Zircon can talk now," Sage commented.

"Wait, really?" Sun looked at the striped earth dragon, who was sunbathing next to his Rider. "Since when?"

"Since yesterday. He said 'Hi.'"

"That is so cute!" Scarlet cooed. "Can he say it now?"

Sage gently nudged his dragon. "Hey, Zircon. Can you say hi to everyone?"

Zircon opened an eye, saw everyone looking at him, and quickly hid under his wing.

"We'll take your word for it." Neptune sat down in the grass by Sun, Nymph curling up behind him and trying once again to do a better job of saying her Rider's name.

"Nnneh. Nnneh. Pbbt. Neh…"

Huo groaned. "It sounds like you got something stuck on the roof of your mouth."

"Well, at least I'm trying!" Nymph huffed.

"Why are you so set on speaking like a human? It's not like they're trying to speak our language."

"We can make the noises. I doubt a human can growl the way we do." Nymph stretched her forelimbs. "Besides, I had a thought."

"You need to stop having those," Huo grumbled.

"I thought," Nymph continued, pointedly ignoring her brother. "That if we learn how to say certain words, we can get our other Riders together, the ones who haven't already paired up."

"Ooh, good idea!" Nimbus piped up. "I mean, Scarlet and Sage didn't need much help, but Sun and Neptune are actually starting to stress me out."

"Don't hold your breath. I don't think Sun has the hots for Neptune yet," Huo commented.

"Was that a pun?" Nymph asked, her tail swishing with amusement.

"Ugh. No!" Huo's ears flattened. "Even Fang doesn't do those."

Nimbus was getting up, noticing his Rider doing the same.

"Hey, Sage," Scarlet said. "Want to go check out that part of the Emerald Forest I told you about?"

"As long as it isn't too far in," Sage cautioned. "Come on, Zircon."

Zircon gulped loudly. "The f-forest?"

Nimbus put a wing over his brother as they walked away.

Sun stretched his arms, lying on his back in the grass and letting out a contented sigh. "Man, with weather like this, it's almost easy to forget everything."

"Not for me," Neptune sighed. "I can't stop thinking about that broadcast or the fact that Team RWBY's involved with secret technology… It's all too crazy. I came here to learn how to fight Grimm!"

"I hear ya," Sun agreed. "What do you think about that broadcast?"

Neptune hesitated. "Should we say this in front of the dragons?"

"Yeah. I don't think we should keep secrets from them."

"I mean, neither do I, but I don't want to scare them."

"They already went through Tornado's culling," Sun pointed out. "It's not like they're totally innocent anymore."

"Truth," Huo muttered, curling himself up a little tighter while fixing his attention on the two Riders.

"I guess, you're right." Neptune stared at his hands. "I'm not sure what to think. I mean, whoever that person was has a point. Dragons aren't treated fairly, and the dragonmasters don't have as much power as we always thought they did."

"What's the story with the others?" Sun wondered. "I know Vacuo's dragonmaster keeps changing, but what about Ironwood and Lionheart?"

"I know Ironwood's dragon was killed in a Grimm battle," Neptune said. "And he's been working to get a spot on the Council since then. As for Lionheart, it's harder to find anything. It's almost like most information on him and his dragon have been erased from all the big websites."

Sun smiled knowingly at his best friend. "And the smaller websites?"

Neptune smiled back before his expression sobered. "They point at something really sketchy. It sounds like his dragon tried to stop a culling and was shot."

Sun winced. "That's awful, but why would someone try to censor it?"

"Not sure." Neptune felt Nymph's head nudging his hand and turned to pet her. "Hey, girl."

"I guess the best we can do is wait and see what happens next," Sun speculated. "I mean, whoever did this will probably do another broadcast, right?"

"Or, they might do something more drastic," Neptune muttered.

Sun looked at Neptune for a moment before getting up and repositioning himself next to his friend, leaning against Nymph's flank. He nudged Neptune with his tail. "Come on. We can take whatever happens. We're badasses, remember?"

"Right." Neptune's cheeks flushed, and he managed a full grin this time. "We have to be, considering Huo's name was almost Badass."

Sun snickered. "I was so close to actually going with that."

"He should have," Huo growled. "That would've been awesome."

Nymph just rolled her eyes, conveniently shifting so that Neptune's arm was touching Sun's.

Sun yawned, relaxing even more against Nymph. "I don't know what it is about your dragon, but she always makes me tired."

Neptune glanced at Nymph. "Hear that? He's calling you boring!"

Nymph let out a huff of laughter, placing her head on her paws. She smiled at Huo, who was already napping, blowing puffs of smoke from his nostrils.

Neptune watched Sun as he started to doze. After several minutes of consideration, he carefully wrapped his arm around his friend's shoulders. His heart stuttered when Sun scooted closer, head drooping onto Neptune's shoulder as he fell fully asleep.

…

It was normal for the stable hands to linger in the barns late at night. The sound of sleeping dragons, the smell of the night air, and the gentle warmth of the giant forms was comforting in a way few other things were. Sky learned that he also wasn't the only one who preferred sleeping in a stall over a bunk.

Most of the stable hands were quiet and kept to themselves. A few of them offered their condolences to Sky before going on their way. Somehow, they seemed more genuine than anyone else who tried telling Sky repeatedly how sorry they were. He wondered how many of the stable hands were like him: former Riders whose dragons had been culled, and who couldn't bear the idea of going through that same pain twice.

It was past midnight when Mudslide's loud snores woke Sky from an already-restless sleep. He grumbled a bit as he sat up, though he gave the dragon a fond smile. Despite all the stress the earth dragon was likely under, she always slept deeply and well.

Tornado probably would have driven the other wind dragons crazy, thrashing around and whacking the walls with his tail as he dreamed.

Tears pricked Sky's eyes and he quickly got up and went outside, dusting sweet-smelling bedding from his clothes. As the wood chips fell away, he sniffed, realizing that his clothes were starting to stink a bit. He'd have to do some laundry soon.

He walked a distance away before lying down in the grass. There was little cloud cover, and most of the stars were shining brightly down at him. _The hell is wrong with me?_ he wondered. _I was fine before. I had friends, I was one of the strongest people in this dragonry, and I had my future all set up. Now, I'm a fucking servant who stares at the stars like some kind of weaksauce pussy._

His thoughts rang hollow, though. He hadn't been fine before. He'd been a crony to someone who ultimately didn't give a damn about him. He had destroyed any hope of having other friends by acting like a bully. He didn't doubt that his willingness to use his dragon as an "attack dog," as other students had once put it, had contributed to Tornado's many issues.

Maybe that was the real reason he was refusing Ozpin's offer of another dragon. Maybe, deep down, he knew that he hadn't deserved Tornado.

 _I still deserved him more than Cardin deserves Mudslide._ Sky's lip curled. He was still technically on probation, so he wouldn't be getting any money this next payday. _I'm second-rate, now that I don't have a dragon. I didn't see Ozpin punishing Cardin at all._

An ugly feeling twisted in his gut. He hated Ozpin. He hated all those professors who claimed to be so good and loving, but who had locked up their dragons and turned away when the Council came for Tornado.

He hated Ozpin, but he was stuck relying on him for now.

Secretly, he had wanted to jump for joy when that broadcast at the Festival was aired over live television. After a week of parading dragons around and acting like everything was fine and dandy, those idiots got a nice dose of reality. He only wished he could have been there to see the dragonmasters' faces when they were finally called out on their bullshit.

He lay there for a few more minutes before sitting up. He stopped halfway up, his gaze suddenly fixed on a spot near the Emerald Forest.

Something definitely human-shaped had just rushed into the trees.

The correct thing to do would have been to report this back at the school, so that a patrol could be sent into the forest. But Sky stopped caring about things like protocol and personal safety the day a charged spike was driven into his dragon's skull.

Pushing himself to his feet, he started toward the forest, fists clenched, ready to beat the hell out of whoever this hapless intruder was. It would be nice to finally beat the hell out of _something_.

As he reached the treeline, he heard footsteps. Then, he heard a voice hiss: "Quiet. Come closer."

"What…?" Sky obeyed, curiosity driving him in.

A hand went over his mouth, and he immediately started struggling, only to be lifted fully off the ground.

"Take it easy, kid," a rough voice, different from the first one, grumbled behind him. "I don't want to hurt you."

Whoever this person was, judging by how far off the ground Sky's feet were, he was ridiculously tall and built like a truck. So, Sky let himself go limp, any wish to fight gone.

The person let out a grunt of approval and placed him on the ground.

Sky spun around, gulping audibly. He had been right. This man was huge, with arms as thick as small trees, stern eyes, and a rough beard.

Another figure slipped out beside him. This one was a horned Faunus, one who was wearing a cloak and mask.

 _White Fang…_ Sky started to shake.

"Stop trembling," the man growled. "I already said we aren't going to hurt you."

Sky looked up at him. "Wh-What do you want?"

"To make you an offer," the man replied. "You're the kid who lost his dragon, right?"

Sky noticed something in the man's voice, a slight hitch of pain that he had only heard when talking to some of the other stable hands. He felt himself relaxing. "Yeah. You too?"

The man nodded. "Follow me."

Sky walked deeper into the forest, until only the large outline of the man guided his way. He started to take out his Scroll but felt a gloved hand close on his wrist.

"No light," the Faunus girl hissed.

Sky nodded, trying not to shiver too obviously at the unexpected touch.

They eventually reached a small clearing that let in a decent amount of moonlight. Sky folded his arms, trying to look tougher than he felt.

"So, what's this offer?"

"Did you hear the broadcast at the Dragon Festival?" the man asked.

"Sure did." Sky grinned. "Nice to hear some real talk for once."

"My employer was responsible for it."

Immediately, Sky's back straightened. His heart pounded. Already, he had an idea concerning what was coming. "Who's your employer?"

"Someone who wants to make sure cullings like what you and I went through will never happen again." The man's eyes blazed. "The system is broken. The Council is filled with people who see dragons as tools. The dragonmasters act like heroes but are really wardens for those murderers."

"What can I do to help?" Sky didn't need any prompting. This was what he had been waiting for.

The man smiled. "Good boy. Here's my employer's proposition: Keep an eye on the goings-on at Beacon. Figure out certain things, like when the groundskeepers go to whichever places, or how often the professors' dragons patrol certain areas." He glanced in the direction of the school. "Also, see if there are any other workers who feel the same way you do, and tell us about them."

Sky nodded, though he did feel a bit of caution creeping back into his consciousness. "Do I get anything out of this?" he asked. "Like, protection if I'm discovered?"

"Of course," the man assured him. "Not only that, but you will have a place with our fighting forces, when the time comes. And, if you wish, you will be given a new dragon, one who will _not_ be culled in front of you!"

"Done!" Sky held out his hand, frowning when the man didn't take it.

"There's one other thing." The man turned to look at the Faunus girl, who stepped forward, noticeably avoiding getting too close to either human.

"The White Fang is joining this fight," she explained. "But, we've been set back. In August, one of our most promising dragons was stolen by a defector, who is now a student at Beacon, a student who is likely in Ozpin's debt."

"Who is it?"

"Blake Belladonna," the Faunus replied. "We of the White Fang are very interested in knowing how she, and especially her dragon, are doing. Do you think you can handle that, no top of your other duties?"

"Sure," Sky said, though he was puzzled. "What's so special about Pit?"

"You tell me," the Faunus replied smoothly. "Has he done anything interesting, lately?"

"Well, he was the only one who got out of his stall when Tornado was being culled," Sky said. "I guess his stall wasn't locked right. He showed more guts than Ozpin did, that's for sure."

"That's very helpful," the Faunus said. "Thank you." She slipped into the trees, vanishing from sight.

The man sighed. "Rude kid. Didn't even introduce herself." He looked down at Sky. "My name's Hazel. I look forward to working with you." This time, he did hold out his hand.

Sky readily shook it. "Sky Lark. Not as much as I am!" His eyes shined with hope and purpose for the first time since Tornado's death.

As he walked back toward Beacon, he remembered one of the last things the broadcast had said and whispered it under his breath.

"A revolution is coming."

 **Not gonna lie: It's going to take some time to outline and prepare the story the way I want to. The only other option is to discontinue completely, and I know no one here wants that. In the meantime, I'll still be updating my smaller chapter works and collections, so you'll still be getting plenty of quality content from Channel Solora!**

 **If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.**

 **Peace out!**


	72. Discontinued

**Hey, guys. Allow me to start by saying I'm sorry. I'm sorry for keeping your hopes up. I'm sorry for committing to something that, in the end, I couldn't finish. Please understand that this isn't a decision I made lightly, or overnight.**

 **I tried. I tried so, so hard to finish this story, because I knew that everyone wanted it to continue and eventually end. I tried to push past the fact that I had already quit the** _ **RWBY**_ **fandom. I tried to fight through what felt like mental cement as I typed page after painstaking page. In the end, I realized that I can't do it.**

 **I have zero passion for this story anymore. Looking at the few chapters I did manage to type in the months since I went on hiatus, it's easy to see the lower quality compared to basically anything else I've written recently. Even plotlines I was mildly excited about, like the Seamonkeys subplot, became stale. I looked at how much of the story there was left, and wanted to cry every time I saw my outline.**

 **I've barely gotten any original work done, because I kept telling myself that I had to work on "Wings" first, and ended up staring at a file for hours and only typing two pages by the end of the day. This fic became a wall between me and everything I wanted to do, and I realized that I just couldn't climb it anymore. The wall has to come down if I want to go anywhere.**

 **I'm sorry that I didn't do this sooner. I thought that, if I kept telling myself and you guys that I absolutely would finish this, it would be enough to push me to do it. It wasn't. I'm constantly aware of the ideas I want to work on, the ideas I'm excited about, but haven't done anything for on account of this fic.**

 **So, after months of agonizing over it, I've decided to end it. You may consider the story up for open adoption. If anyone wants to take it and continue it, you have my blessing. You're probably more passionate about this fic than I ever will be again.**

 **For the sake of closure, I'm going to tell to you exactly what I had in my outline:**

Basically, Cinder is seeking revenge for the Hybrid Purge, during which her original dragon, a wind/fire hybrid named Abaddon, was killed. Also working with her are Hazel and Tyrian.

Hazel is the boy from the article, who tried to save his sister's dragon, but ended up losing his dragon, his sister's dragon, and his sister.

Tyrian originally had a hybrid dragon, which was killed during the Purge. He enrolled at Mistral and was given a water dragon, who turned out to be defective and was set to be culled. Lionheart's dragon, Savannah, managed to escape and was killed along with Tyrian's dragon in a rescue attempt. This led to Tyrian's mind snapping. Lionheart denounced his dragon's actions in order to keep his position, and was eventually made dragonmaster.

This is brought to light during the fall of Haven, which happens right after Cinder's rogues stop a culling. Most of Haven's students choose to join her. The remaining students, including Emerald and Mercury, go to Beacon. Soon after, Tyrian forces Lionheart to hang himself, solidifying to many the image they have painted of him being a coward.

There, Jade sows unrest among the dragons, especially Mudslide, who finally snaps and flies away after injuring Cardin. The Winchester family threatens to sue. Soon after, all of the deformed dragons are revealed to the Council. Everyone thinks it's the Winchesters, but it was actually Cinder.

When the Council arrives at Beacon, Ozpin takes a stand, refusing to give up the dragons, and is shot and killed. The students immediately rise against the Council, who are killed by the dragons. Ragnar goes mad with grief and flies away, evading the Council as well as Cinder's rogues. This is when the main cast joins Cinder, and Ruby is given Penny.

Shade is brought down using the dragon cage fighting arenas. Since Shade actually supports the arenas, it's relatively easy to talk the dragons into rebelling. A full on siege is laid to Shade, during which Barracuda and Russel are killed.

Some of the cast is having second thoughts about Cinder. Meanwhile, Raven has outsourced to another group of rogues to kidnap Whitley and Glacier in order to blackmail the SDC into not injecting any more dragonry eggs. Whitley and Glacier escape together, but this is kept a secret from everyone but the rogues.

Weiss finds traces of an anti-Dust cream in samples of the Dust Cinder's group has been using, and realizes that Cinder has been using her plant in the SDC to sabotage the eggs, meaning that Cinder is responsible for the dragonet deformities.

Teams RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN try to flee, but Titan is killed during the escape. Soon after, the group is captured by the Atlesian military. One of the officers recognizes Penny, who hasn't left Storm's head since their reunion, and sends the group to Ironwood, who has gathered all of the remaining Riders to Atlas. He is totally done with both the Council and Cinder at this point, declaring that Dragon Riders are meant to fight Grimm, not each other. He has also discovered the truth about Ozpin's death by determining that he was shot by a sniper, not a Council gun. Cinder had him killed in order to provoke the Beacon students and make him an unwilling martyr for her cause.

By this point, Emerald and Mercury are having their doubts and try to leave. Emerald is killed while Mercury, Jade, and Rudder escape.

Everything eventually leads to a huge battle between Atlas's forces and Cinder's rogues, which ends with Cinder and Strike being killed and most of the rogues surrendering when the extent of Cinder's sabotage is revealed. Raven's bandits manage to escape back into the wild. During this battle, Storm's wings are torn off, and either Tempest or York is killed protecting Taiyang. The remaining Riders refuse to submit to the Council anymore, and force it to disband.

There is an epilogue that details how the Riders have become a force unto themselves, serving all of the kingdoms in the fight against the Grimm, but having allegiance to no one kingdom. Dragons have been given citizenship status, and Ruby is training with her two dragons: Jade and York/Tempest. Storm, Nimbus, and Ao Guang, have opened a school for disabled elementals, where they teach them how to live with their disabilities and discover their unique talents. Ruby speculates that, now that the Riders are much more selective about who joins their ranks, another division of specialized fighters will be needed to combat the Grimm. She looks at a prototype of a sniper scythe she's working on, and thinks that "Huntsmen" might be an appropriate name for them.

Other plotlines include:

Seamonkeys actually getting together, largely because Nymph flat-out tells Neptune that Sun's in love with him.

Ragnar finding and bonding to Oscar after Ozpin's death. The two rescue Whitley and Glacier. Rich Farmers becomes a ship, and Glacier slowly learns how to speak and overcome his abuse from Jacques. In the end, Glacier rejects Jacques and claims Whitley as his Rider, while Ragnar does the same for Oscar.

Gemstone. The Emerald/Ruby ship would have obviously taken a tragic turn in this fic, with Emerald not leaving with the main group and then getting killed later on. Ruby's love for Emerald is one of the reasons she becomes Jade's new Rider after Storm is retired.

Penny gains full sentience and is used as a model for a series of simple dragon translators. All dragons have them by the end of the story. Penny herself is uploaded into a dragon-like mech, the only one of its kind, which Ironwood pilots. Penny declares "I'm a real dragon!" when she sees Storm and Ruby again, and considers Ironwood to be her Rider.

Pyrrha and everyone else dealing with the loss of Titan. Twiggy especially takes it hard. Pyrrha eventually gets a new dragon after a raid on the White Fang. An already-hatched hybrid wind/fire dragon is found, which was likely meant for Sienna Khan before the attack. Pyrrha wrangles and bonds to it. The dragon, who she names Harpy, is very possessive and aggressive, frequently butting heads with a bitter Twiggy, who refuses to accept her as a JNPR dragon.

Taiyang and Qrow go on their own journey to Atlas after the Fall of Beacon. York and Tempest travel with them, and one of the two dragons is killed during the final battle. I never decided which one.

Adam is killed by Sienna Khan, and Brand is taken in by Hazel. They end up going rogue after Cinder kills Emerald, and remain in the wild even after the Council is disbanded. They eventually join Raven's bandits. Sky and Mudslide, who became a team after the Fall of Beacon, also choose to remain rogues.

There's a scene where Neptune fully overcomes his aquaphobia when he and Nymph have to save Ren and Ao Guang from drowning.

We find out that Ironwood stuck with the Council for so long because his own dragon had been deformed, and was painfully killed in battle due to its overlooked disability becoming a hindrance.

Storm meets a brood dragon that had been stolen from the Violet Broodery, and realizes that they're siblings. This leads to a deeper comparison between the elementals and the broodies as Storm attempts to communicate with him.

There is also a scene where the Council debates the necessity of their strict dragon policies, with some pointing out the issues of the past, such as the hybrid dragons that once went rogue and the dragons and Riders who died as a result of an overlooked deformity, and others advocating more lenient policies, but being overruled.

 **Aaaaand, that's what I had figured out. There's still a lot of plot holes and characters I didn't account for. Can you see now why it was all too much, especially for a fic I had no passion for anymore?**

 **As you can see, I did try. It took ages to outline this story, to figure out the intricacies of Cinder's plot, to come up with the sideplots. I hate to leave it like this. I really do. But I think this story might be better in your hands. Use as much or as little of this outline as you want. This story is yours, now.**

 **In the meantime, I'm going to devote myself fully to my original works. You'll probably see fics from me every now and then, but they won't be for** _ **RWBY**_ **.**

 **I hope you can forgive me for this, and I hope that you'll keep a look out for my original writing in the future. I can promise that it will be better than anything that's currently on this page. Of that, I'm positive.**

 **Thank you for all the support you've given me as I struggled with this fic. I hate that I failed, but I know that I couldn't have gotten as far as I did without you.**

 **Until next time, peace out.**


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